Loving Liberty...X3

[BecciBoo]

I didn't see them, but that doesn't mean a thing, we were too busy and didn't need it. Maybe George can tell us.

[BecciBoo]

Entertainment...

 

Again I crashed before 10 on most nights...such a woos! But the Ice Show Encore was great...this troupe seemed to be new and in need of rehearsals. Which happens with new people. THere were a lot of spills at the 2:00 performance on Saturday, Mom said fewer at 4:00 but still a couple. I give them a break because you know that has to hurt bad when you hit the ice that hard. But I wouldn't miss it for the world. Still my favorite.

 

Saturday Night Fever... a little over acted by the lead and a few flat notes here and there, I was most impressed with the production itself, it was fantastic, truly Broadway caliber, but they need to match that with the voices. Overall, it was very entertaining and I liked it. No lines for anything we attended just walked in.

 

We failed to see In the Air although we saw it on Allure.

 

We heard Derek was great as usual but didn't make that either. Made a little bit of the Karaoke always fun.

[George C]

I'm sailing on the Liberty May 22 -29 and wondered if they are offering the 10 drink punch card.

 

It was offered the last few days of the cruise, I think price was 69

[BecciBoo]

Ports...

 

We did West Bay Beach independently with Bananarama for $30 pp which gets you transportation to and from, lounger and one free drink...in my case a Monkey La La a Roatan tradition. Water wonderful, beach great But we are talkin hot baby! We did a snorkel on Blue Channel, very good for $10 pp for an hour. Just a vendor on the beach. Lunch was so good, a huge plate full of pulled pork nachos...manna from heaven for this TexMex girl! $10.

 

Next stop: Belize. Tender was better than I remember it because of the fairly new fleet of tenders since our last trip here. Still just a short 20 minute ride. Went back to Goff's Caye through Island Marketing and Ecoexcursiosbelize dot com. $40 pp transportation on another small boat, rum punch and you pay for lunch...was pretty good with the Chicken kabobs, chicken quartrers, hot dogs and grouper, beans/rice. $8 -$10. I took fish, yum! Wrapped in foil with spices and a little sauce, so good. Snorkeling here was fantastic...here is my video using GoPro Session:

 

Finishing with: Cozumel and Nachi Cocom...our go to playa, been there 10 times now. $55 all you can drink alcohol included and a snack and lunch. I got the BBQ ribs this time along with the Cerviche Mixto I always get for my snack. Jose's bloody marys are my favorite and a few Vodka Tonics. My favorite place to just chill rest up from the cruise and the physical strain of 2 days in the sun and surf...spent all my time in the water again though, half the day in the surf and the rest in the pool. Burnt to a crisp (already peeling!)

 

I might add more pics but that's it. Already spoke of the disembarkation. Another great cruise and counting...122 days 3 hrs 39 mins 40 secs till Alaska!:D

Edited May 3, 2016 by BecciBoo

[Sunny7961]

A unique view of the Tidal Wave:

View My Video

 

Would you believe we never made it down the other 2 slides..yeah duh! Note to self...book another Liberty cruise!

 

But my SIL said she could hardly get down it, just too little water going down to flush a body down it. And she was laying down and weighs about 110 lbs!

 

I loved the lazagna!!! The combo of bolonese & cream sauce is exactly the way my brothers au pair from Italy made it!! Fantastico!!! I do understand it is very different from what most Americans are used too. BTW, Andel, our waiter told us 13 servings of lazagna is the record for one person to eat in the MDR. I loved it, but could barely finish one serving. Yikes!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Ready for some subjective criticism?

 

Food...First night MDR menu was Mojo. I use to drool over the chops when they first came out with it, but that too has changed, and the chop, which seemed to be a good cut of meat was cooked way too much, I had about 3 bites and passed, the sauce on it was nauseating also. Another change since the first cruises we had. In fact a lot of dishes with chicken and other meats were dry and over cooked. It was sad. In general all the food has worsened over the years and I am a staunch RCCL foody. I couldn't consume my strip steak, sorry RCCL you need to work on that. I find good Choice cuts at my super market better than that.

 

My SIL mentioned the filet in Giovanni's was the best one she has ever had at any restaurant and they enjoyed that dinner as the best of their cruise. Unfortunately, we didn't get there this time.

 

Some things were just as before, the crab cakes were fabulous along with the seafood ravioli, the garlic soup, lobster bisque and Poblano soups.

My group doubled up on some of these starters, they are always superb...the Escargot (real) and the fake(scollups) we almost all had 2.

 

But others were just plain unappetizing. You can't make really good lasagna without Ricotta...theirs was awful. Go figure. Desserts too were a disappointment, my Sugar Free Coconut Cake...gone, just the other one Coconut and Lychee slice, ..yuck! The chocolate ones were better, but they need to get a good Chocolate melting cake recipe from Carnival or something.;) THe tiramisu and Key Lime Pie were tasty as always.

 

Wind Jammer has really lost us, we tried but the only thing I liked all day there were the fresh omelets. Guess I'm just tired of the same old selections. The ones I really liked like the Alfredo pastas and Honey Stung chicken long gone. And now the cream gravy to go with the biscuits (really scones...you don't put sugar in biscuits!) is now SOS sorta...not milk gravy, which IMHO is the only gravy belonging on good southern biscuits.

 

The highlight for me was Sabor's which we had tried on Navigator and found not quite right for TexMex addicts. But it had just been introduced the first time and this time was much better. They still need to work on their tacos chimichangas, and quesadillas which I think are too dry, needs more sauce. But the table side Guacamole and chips wonderful! Margaritas tasty. And this place has the best dessert on the whole ship, do not miss it no matter what your New Year's resolutions were! We went for lunch to save a little $$ and its less crowded. $20 pp.

 

Sorry I do not have any food porn, our group descended on the table every evening like the Mongol Horde on Rome.:o Me included...no time for pics.

 

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention our wait staff. For a group of 17 which swelled from as little as 8 to full roster on any given night, our wait staff at My Time Dining bent over backward to accommodate our needs. Some nights when not every one was there, they moved a small table to our larger one so 2 or 3 others would not have to sit alone, Most nights we had 2 tables, one 10 top and one 8 top. In the very back of the dining room but on the window and we ate at 6:30 the first few nights, moving to 7 when they requested it. The least we could do. So if you think MTD won't work with a large group...try it! Agnole/India and Dominique/Caribbean were terrific, never a sour face during all this rigamarole and even helped celebrate our 20th and Mother's Day as well. They got a great write up on our exit interview!

[Sunny7961]

Oops, that should be 12 servings of lazagna. The record for lobster tails is 48!!! I love lobster, but can't even imagine eating so much!!!

[Sunny7961]

We loved Sabor too! We ate their Monday night and went back again for lunch on Saturday. Living in the Midwest is the worst when it comes to Mexican food. Kinda like trying to find good pizza in Texas!

[JaniceB]

Thank you for sharing your cruise on the Liberty with us. I enjoyed reading about your trip.

[Sunny7961]

We really liked the card room on deck 10 (former CL). We played games there with the grandkids each day.

 

You may have seen me in there a couple of times. I was the only reading a Nook and waiting for the cabin steward to finish our room. I know I can go to the when they are there. I just refer to wait since it's a little awkward for me. :)

[Sun Lakes Cruiser]

Thanks for the great review. One person indicated Nochi Cocum's pool was freezing .... what was your impression? Looking forward to the swim up bar and relaxing in the warm water!!!

[Let'sGo!]

Thanks for the quickie review. I am especially interested in what fellow Texans say about Sabor. Living in San Antonio I'm having a hard time getting hubby into trying this on a cruise ship!

 

Ann

[pacman85]

Food...First night MDR menu was Mojo. I use to drool over the chops when they first came out with it, but that too has changed, and the chop, which seemed to be a good cut of meat was cooked way too much, I had about 3 bites and passed, the sauce on it was nauseating also. Another change since the first cruises we had. In fact a lot of dishes with chicken and other meats were dry and over cooked. It was sad. In general all the food has worsened over the years and I am a staunch RCCL foody. I couldn't consume my strip steak, sorry RCCL you need to work on that. I find good Choice cuts at my super market better than that.

 

My SIL mentioned the filet in Giovanni's was the best one she has ever had at any restaurant and they enjoyed that dinner as the best of their cruise. Unfortunately, we didn't get there this time.

 

Some things were just as before, the crab cakes were fabulous along with the seafood ravioli, the garlic soup, lobster bisque and Poblano soups.

My group doubled up on some of these starters, they are always superb...the Escargot (real) and the fake(scollups) we almost all had 2.

 

But others were just plain unappetizing. You can't make really good lasagna without Ricotta...theirs was awful. Go figure. Desserts too were a disappointment, my Sugar Free Coconut Cake...gone, just the other one Coconut and Lychee slice, ..yuck! The chocolate ones were better, but they need to get a good Chocolate melting cake recipe from Carnival or something.;) THe tiramisu and Key Lime Pie were tasty as always.

 

Wind Jammer has really lost us, we tried but the only thing I liked all day there were the fresh omelets. Guess I'm just tired of the same old selections. The ones I really liked like the Alfredo pastas and Honey Stung chicken long gone. And now the cream gravy to go with the biscuits (really scones...you don't put sugar in biscuits!) is now SOS sorta...not milk gravy, which IMHO is the only gravy belonging on good southern biscuits.

 

The highlight for me was Sabor's which we had tried on Navigator and found not quite right for TexMex addicts. But it had just been introduced the first time and this time was much better. They still need to work on their tacos chimichangas, and quesadillas which I think are too dry, needs more sauce. But the table side Guacamole and chips wonderful! Margaritas tasty. And this place has the best dessert on the whole ship, do not miss it no matter what your New Year's resolutions were! We went for lunch to save a little $$ and its less crowded. $20 pp.

 

I'm disappointed to read that the only really good experiences you had with food were at the restaurants that cost an additional fee on top of what you are already paying for the cruise. Hopefully Royal Caribbean takes note of this and improves their food.

Edited May 3, 2016 by pacman85

[TxKroozer]

Glad to hear your family cruise was successful. Sad they are still having issues in the Diamond Lounge. And strange they still don't have Tidal Wave operating. Maybe by September when we cruise on the Liberty again.

 

We just got back from the Panama Canal cruise. I posted a new short Movie Trailer on my YouTube channel and I am working on the longer movie version now.

[wolfganghowell]

TexasAnn - as a fellow native Texan, I was very skeptical of Sabor. We're fans now- possibly our favorite specialty. it's not traditional Tex Mex.

[Sunny7961]

Becci, love your review. Thanks for posting!

 

My favorite part of the cruise was Saturday Night Fever. I thought is was an amazing production and surprised they could pull this off on a cruise ship. It was definitely Broadway quality. I have seen shows on Broadway in NYC and my family used to subscribe to the Broadway Series in Cincinnati with the traveling casts. This was definitely on the same level.

 

Did you see the first show or the later show? We had the 5:30pm MDR and saw the second show. I didn't hear any off notes, but maybe it was the alcohol - LOL! :)

[Sunny7961]

This was my 5th cruise and all 4 cruises before this one had an Italian night. This is the night they serve the Italian menu and the waiters parade around to Italian music waving Italian flags. I believe the reason is because the captains and officers are mostly Italian. Anyway...

Since this ship's home port is TX they paraded around with Texas flags. Terrific nod to the State of Texas. The funny thing is they were playing "When the Saints Come Marching In" while they were waving the Texas flags! I thought that was so funny. They should have played The Eyes of Texas or Deep in the Heart of Texas while waving the TX flags.

They ended up playing Deep in the Heart of Texas afterwards and people sang along. I couldn't remember the lyrics except for the old Pearl Beer commercial back in the 70's..."the water's clear, that makes Pearl Beer, deep in the heart of Texas!... :D

[Clarea]

Thanks for the review.:) Liberty has a special place in our hearts as that is where our daughter was married.

[nativetexan]

Glad you had a great time. Can't you believe you wrangled 17 ppl. Yikes!

Thanks for the review!!

[pspercy]

[quote name='TexasAnn']Thanks for the quickie review. I am especially interested in what fellow Texans say about Sabor. Living in San Antonio I'm having a hard time getting hubby into trying this on a cruise ship!

Ann[/quote]


Do it !

We loved it on Navigator out of Galveston:D

[BecciBoo]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][SIZE="3"]It's a must do...keep trying, he'll like it![/SIZE][/FONT]

[BecciBoo]

[quote name='clarea']Thanks for the review.:) Liberty has a special place in our hearts as that is where our daughter was married.[/QUOTE]

[SIZE="3"]Same here Bob...My name is actually on the wall on Liberty, Contest poem still outside the Cruise Directors office...so she will always be special to us.:D

Don't mean to brag or anything but...
[IMG]http://i68.tinypic.com/2qm3h3t.jpg[/IMG]
[/SIZE]

[Clarea]

[quote name='BecciBoo'][SIZE=3]Same here Bob...My name is actually on the wall on Liberty, Contest poem still outside the Cruise Directors office...so she will always be special to us.:D

Don't mean to brag or anything but...

[/SIZE][/quote]
Very cool.:)

[golfpccc]

Hi Becci,

Looked for you Sunday while I was setting on bench waiting for doors to open, must have just missed you. Anyway, so glad you had a great time with your family!!

DL is still over flowing and slower this week because of the swiping of the cards when you order a drink. Actually they have an officer swiping the cards so the bartenders can just make drinks and take orders. Noticed the officer taking count as people walked in the door and how many were standing in line to order drinks, etc. Also, have an officer from Miami in DL keeping an eye on the situation and talking with guests.

Anxious to read your review, but can't download your videos because I only have the surf Internet package. Internet does seem faster.

I was just down in the CD's office, now I'll have to go back and read your poem - always wondered where it was located. Sorry we missed you.

Carla Edited May 4, 2016 by golfpccc

[BecciBoo]

[SIZE="3"]Wow Carla, must've just missed you, Mom and I sat on benches down by the first luggage doors to wait for Todd to pick us up. LOL

I wish you'd confirm what George said about the switching complaints to put us in the Suite lounge instead. We all need to get behind this. I sent mine in:D[/SIZE]

[golfpccc]

Have had a big wig from Miami here this week checking out the situation in the DL. She was going around talking to people and asking questions. We wanted to talk with her but never got the chance, she left the ship today.

I sat on the bench nearer the entrance to security, so on the right side as you come out of customs.

We have been told that the Liberty has become a test ship and that Miami is interested in all the comments and suggestions we make!! This week they are swiping our cards every time we order a drink in DL and counting how many people enter the lounge between 4:30 - 8:00. An officer has been swiping the cards so the bartenders can make and serve drinks. No one knows what they are going to do with the information. We find the lounge just way too crowded and loud so opt to set outside is there isn't a private function in the area.

Carla