LIVE - Freedom of the Seas Transatlantic - Barcelona to Fort Lauderdale - Oct 22-Nov 5

Friends of ours Debbie and David Smith are on this sailing. Following along....one day we will be able to have the time for our own TA.

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I love this pic. The drink and the stirer with RC emblem set up just right. Centered in the reflection of the setting sun. Perfect! Not sure if it was planned that way, but well done.

Haha persistence paid off! Thank you! It took about 15 tries to get the picture - I couldn't see my phone screen with the sun, and the stirrer kept blowing around due to the wind! But finally - success!

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First off, here are today's cruise compasses! My apologies, I forgot to post them earlier!

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We didn't end up going all the way back to Barcelona - instead, a small speed boat came to pick up the ill person. Shortly after, we resumed our journey to Cadiz.

I went back to the diamond lounge (well, the Star Lounge turned diamond lounge) around 7:40 and it was packed. I think it was the early and late seating people crossing paths. A note about my beverage preferences. I prefer fruity, sickly sweet drinks (think mudslides and piña coladas). As such, I am always asking "what can you make me that's sweet and fruity?". Earlier today, that was a rum punch (way too strong!). This time I decided to try a lemon drop since everyone and their best friends on Cruise Critic say how fantastic they are! Unfortunately, while the rim was delicious, I cannot say the same for the drink itself! Nonetheless, I drank it and moved on!

I arranged a large shared table on the roll call board so I was eager to meet my tablemates (well, those whom I didn't already know from last year's spring Independence TA). I am happy to say that all worked out wonderfully and we had some great conversation and some giggles! I look forward to the next 13 nights!

The menu tonight was the usual embarkation day menu:

I had the smoked fish rillettes:

Followed by the artichoke and eggplant tart (which our waiter tried to dissuade me from ordering). It was actually quite good!

I ordered the horseradish crusted salmon as my main. It was also very good, and the mashed potatoes underneath it were delicious!

For dessert I had the butter almond ice cream! I actually wanted creme brûlée which is on the everyday dessert menu, but I find when a good ice cream flavor comes along, you have to grab it!

We must have had a great table because we literally closed the place! We left at 10:20, which meant we had missed most of the welcome aboard show. I walked in and caught the tail end - an aerialist couple. They were outstanding and got a standing ovation.

I just returned to my room to find that the bed was moved over as requested. While I won't have to do acrobatics to get into bed now, my stateroom attendant will to try to make the bed! It seems much more functional though like this, and at least I can still sprawl out without being confined to a twin bed if I had them split.

That's all for now! Coming up tomorrow - Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle (in studio B due to the number of attendees!) and formal night (which includes my favorite dish of the cruise! Stay tuned to find out what that is!

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Earlier today, that was a rum punch (way too strong!).

Just ask the bartender to cut back on the rum.

Just ask the bartender to cut back on the rum.

I realize I'm in the minority of those who would do that! Hahaha!

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Thanks for sharing.

Really enjoying for review!

Thank you so much for sharing your pictures etc from the cruise. Makes me feel as if I’m right there with you. :)

Jenni

Thank you for taking the time to tell us about your trip... I'm excited to enjoy the trip with you (sort of). I love both the Liberty and the Indy - I need to get on the Freedom one of these days to complete the set.

Hello from day 2!!! It's a beautiful day today - the weather is gorgeous, and the Mediterranean Sea is completely flat!

I started my morning with breakfast in the Main Dining Room! The dining staff finally have it right - instead of one dining room with a buffet and menu as on most ships, they have opened 2 levels for breakfast. The 3rd deck is buffet only (including omelette stations), and deck 5 is a la carte. I arrived towards the end of breakfast so opted for a la carte. There was a very long wait to get in (20 minutes) until they finally opened up a separate section to clear the line. Fortunately the service was completely uphill from there! They were very prompt and on the ball - the opposite of all previous experiences at breakfast!

After breakfast I went for a stroll around the Promenade deck. It was a gorgeous morning!

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The Meet and Mingle was held at 10:30am in Studio B. Unfortunately that setting, while necessary because there were 490 Cruise Critic members onboard, was not conducive to much meeting or mingling. The captain, cruise director, and hotel director all made appearances, and they did some draws for prizes. My ticket was off by 1 number for a RCI prize pack! Other prizes included 24 hours of internet, RCI merchandise, a hot stone massage, and bottles of wine.

I decided to see how far the 1 specialty coffee per day loaded on all diamond members' seapass cards would go. The welcome letter made it sound as if it could only be redeemed in the MDR; however, I asked at the Promenade Cafe and they said I could use it there! Better yet, I could use it on anything I wanted, including cold or blended drinks! As a non-coffee drinker, that was super exciting for me! I ended up getting a delicious iced chai latte!

From there, I wandered around the ship, and eventually landed in the Schooner Bar where they had sign-ups for a boat building competition. The rules were given (you may use anything on the ship to make a boat of maximum 3'x3' size, with the exception of life-rings or life-vests). The boat competition will take place in the pool on day 13, and they will create obstacles to see who's boat is the most durable. I plan to discuss with my table-mates at dinner tonight to see if they're up for the challenge! Sounds like it could be fun!

After that it was off to the main dining room for lunch! For me, perfect days for the MDR are those when I am not yet in a wet swimsuit pool-side! I started with the salad bar:

Followed by the chicken tenders with potato salad:

And finished with the apple parcel:

That's all for now! There are plenty of activities going on around the ship today so I will see where I end up!

Coming up later - the captain's welcome aboard reception, formal night dinner (hoping my favorite meal lives up to my high expectations), and I will likely call it an early night because we're in Cadiz/Seville tomorrow and I have a looooooong tour!

Stay tuned! [emoji3]

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I decided to see how far the 1 specialty coffee per day loaded on all diamond members' seapass cards would go. The welcome letter made it sound as if it could only be redeemed in the MDR; however, I asked at the Promenade Cafe and they said I could use it there!

Ah, what? Where did that perk come from? I don't remember that being a normal perk.

Ah, what? Where did that perk come from? I don't remember that being a normal perk.

^^^Following for the response to the above question. Also following your review. Great so far. Sailing the Freedom on November 5th.

You are making me more excited about my upcoming cruise and I did not think that was possible!

Ah, what? Where did that perk come from? I don't remember that being a normal perk.

It's only on this TA cruise due to the number of Diamond and up members onboard - they're trying to cut down on diamond lounge crowds. Similar to the idea behind the fleet-wide 3 drinks/night for happy hour!

Needless to say it's a perk I plan on taking full advantage of! Haha! [emoji3]

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I left the Freedom on Sunday so it's especially nice following along with you. Hope you have as nice a cruise as I did.

The Meet and Mingle was held at 10:30am in Studio B. Unfortunately that setting, while necessary because there were 490 Cruise Critic members onboard, was not conducive to much meeting or mingling. The captain, cruise director, and hotel director all made appearances, and they did some draws for prizes. My ticket was off by 1 number for a RCI prize pack! Other prizes included 24 hours of internet, RCI merchandise, a hot stone massage, and bottles of wine.

 

 

I decided to see how far the 1 specialty coffee per day loaded on all diamond members' seapass cards would go. The welcome letter made it sound as if it could only be redeemed in the MDR; however, I asked at the Promenade Cafe and they said I could use it there! Better yet, I could use it on anything I wanted, including cold or blended drinks! As a non-coffee drinker, that was super exciting for me! I ended up getting a delicious iced chai latte!

 

 

From there, I wandered around the ship, and eventually landed in the Schooner Bar where they had sign-ups for a boat building competition. The rules were given (you may use anything on the ship to make a boat of maximum 3'x3' size, with the exception of life-rings or life-vests). The boat competition will take place in the pool on day 13, and they will create obstacles to see who's boat is the most durable. I plan to discuss with my table-mates at dinner tonight to see if they're up for the challenge! Sounds like it could be fun!

 

After that it was off to the main dining room for lunch! For me, perfect days for the MDR are those when I am not yet in a wet swimsuit pool-side! I started with the salad bar:

 

 

Followed by the chicken tenders with potato salad:

 

 

And finished with the apple parcel:

 

 

That's all for now! There are plenty of activities going on around the ship today so I will see where I end up!

 

Coming up later - the captain's welcome aboard reception, formal night dinner (hoping my favorite meal lives up to my high expectations), and I will likely call it an early night because we're in Cadiz/Seville tomorrow and I have a looooooong tour!

 

Stay tuned! [emoji3]

 

 

 

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Sitting in the seats is definitely NOT conducive to 'meeting and mingling' for sure. To often this has become more about 'the staff' talking than the original intent of 'cruisers meeting and mingling' with each other.

It's only on this TA cruise due to the number of Diamond and up members onboard - they're trying to cut down on diamond lounge crowds. Similar to the idea behind the fleet-wide 3 drinks/night for happy hour!

 

Needless to say it's a perk I plan on taking full advantage of! Haha! [emoji3]

 

 

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Yes. That is a great perk. I was on a cruise once when the diamond lounge coffee pot was broken. They gave us unlimited coffee, etc., from the coffee shop. I was on a b2b and enjoyed this perk for two weeks. It was great.

What’s the condition of the freedom, there was another thread saying she was in rough shape.

following along, know some guests on this sailing

What’s the condition of the freedom, there was another thread saying she was in rough shape.

To answer your question - the public areas seem a-ok! I haven't seen any big signs of wear and tear. The outside is in great shape from what I've seen so far - no rust, failings are nice and shiny, etc.

The room is looking somewhat old. My first thought, with my last several cruises having been on newer ships, was "woah they need to overhaul the rooms". I think I'm just getting over it now but it's not bothering me as much. There are some drawers that aren't aligned properly so don't open and close well, there's a mixture of hanger types in my closet (no biggie but the small OCD part of me is a little bothered! Haha!), and the bathroom looks like it's seen better days (nothing major, but a slightly scratched toilet bowl, etc.

So really nothing horrendous and really nothing very noticeable!

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So the remainder of my afternoon was spent sort of aimlessly wandering around! I sat poolside for a couple hours reading, watched the line dancing class (which was PACKED!!!), and then grabbed a diamond drink in the Star Lounge and a slice of pizza and some tiramisu from Sorrento's. The one thing about late seating dinner is that I always find I eat 2 lunches in the afternoons because I get too hungry by 6ish. Then again isn't eating every hour part of cruising?! Hahaha! I also happened to meet Kung Fu Panda on the Royal Promenade! Okay, okay - I just might have timed my snack with the listed time in the Cruise compass! Re-living my childhood here! [emoji38]

I started feeling a bit out of place in my jeans as people started emerging in their formal night gear. So off I went to prep for dinner!

I went back to the diamond lounge, which was now packed, so I took my drink to go and wound up mingling with people in the R Bar for the next hour or so. Which also meant that I missed the free bubbly and the captains welcome aboard speech on the Royal Promenade. No biggie - seen many before!

Dinner tonight - you are all going to be VERY disappointed in me! I forgot to take pictures right up until dessert! I even forgot to take a picture of the menu! Yes, I know - how could I?! Well, I had a great reason! My tablemates are just SO much fun and we had so many laughs that I completely forgot!

So the details! Night 2 has been my favorite menu for as long as I can remember! It's always the first formal night, and it's always the same menu! I ordered the bay scallops gratin (served like escargot in garlic butter with bread for dipping), followed by the shrimp cocktail, and then - drumroll...... my favorite dish.... the filet of beef tenderloin! Fortunately having ordered it on every.single.cruise, I have a picture of it! From 6 years ago! But believe it or not, it still looks the exact same! So here it is:

I then splurged on 2 desserts.

Creme brûlée:

And chocolate soufflé with espresso sauce. Delicious as always!

Our table once again closed the dining room. I have an early tour tomorrow so I am just packing up my stuff for that and then turning in "early".

Tomorrow we will be docked in Cadiz from 8am-7pm. I booked an all-day shared tour with Spain Day Tours (I believe a few other Cruise Critic members will be on it as well). Stay tuned for details tomorrow! Bonus points if you watch Game of Thrones, since I'm told it's taped there! Having said that, I know absolutely NOTHING about that show so no promises that I will take pictures of the right places! [emoji23]

Good night, all! And thanks once again for following along!

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Following

Before I go to bed... any guesses on what this creature is? It looks like a cat or a raccoon face with chubby legs!

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Before I go to bed... any guesses on what this creature is? It looks like a cat or a raccoon face with chubby legs!

 

 

 

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It reminds me of the puppet, Lambchops that Shari Lewis had in her act.