Liberty 7/25 Eastern Caribbean - Trip n Ship - a short novel

[BSQ]

I am back from the 7/26/08 sailing of the Liberty. Our itinerary was the Easter Caribbean, with Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan, and Grand Turk as our ports of call. I’m a novice cruiser … this being only my second sailing. The first was on board the Sensation. BIG DIFFERENCE.

 

Sailing during a peak summer month, I was a bit anxious. I thought the ship might be over run with screaming brats errr kids. (No offense folks, but I don’t have kids, and really prefer the well-behaved variety). At the beginning of the year I relocated from the South East back to my native Southern California. Life has gotten a bit hectic. More than anything I was simply looking forward to good old-fashioned relaxing. I’ll warn you. To me, there’s more to a cruise than just the ship, so you’re getting a trip report, not a ship review. Sometimes I might write purely for my own entertainment. I’ll try to insert some pictures, but I can be a bit challenged in that department. I don’t wear a watch. You are now on Q-time.

 

I enjoy traveling solo. I work in the fast paced fashion industry, and use my vacations as a time to decompress. No cell phones. No computers. No newspapers. No CNN. I enjoy exploring new places, and seem to always have a suitcase being packed or unpacked. I hate the beach, but love the sea. I enjoy port days over sea days, and am not a big fan of crowds.

 

So onward reading peoples … let’s begin.

 

Cruise Critic Group Cruise

2 years ago I decided I wanted to try out a cruise. This is what brought me to Cruise Critic. Early on I saw the Member Cruise section and started reading that. Honestly I was just looking for a price break. Late one night a thread caught my attention. I probably lurked reading it for 2 weeks. Finally decided I liked the banter of the folks on the thread and they seemed organized. I just knew it would be a good fit for me. I knew I could participate as little or as much as I wanted. Shortly after I booked the cruise, and introduced myself in the forum. For a solo traveler the pricing was amazing. It was kind of fun watching the prices increase on the Carnival site while we were locked in. Yes, there were some perks being a part of this group. The best one by far was the people I came to know posting on the message board. They saw me through a job change, coast-to-coast relocation and countless household moves, until I finally found a place to live that was safe. Oh, and a very bad hangnail. It was nice walking through the ship or in port and passing exchanging friendly hellos and “how was your day?” with these friendly folks.

 

So if you have the opportunity, I’d say check out a CC group cruise. I will forever remember all the great people that participated in Lovin’ Life on Liberty, or Lifers as we came to call ourselves.

[BSQ]

[BSQ]

Flights

Well, I have to start at the beginning of my trip. I flew American Airlines from LAX to MIA. I purchased my ticket prior to the baggage charge changes. My first bag was to be free of charge; my second checked bag $25. They did not charge me. So yay for that.

 

I’ve only recently moved back to Los Angeles, I am used to much smaller airports and shorter drives. Consequently I didn’t allow enough time for my oh gosh thirty arrival. I got to curbside check-in 10 minutes after the baggage cutoff. My luggage went on the next flight. Long story short, I arrived in Miami 9 hours later than planned.

 

 

PreCruise Hotel

So, my 2pm arrival into Miami turned into an 11pm arrival. My visions of mojitos and a Cuban sandwich in Lil Havana dashed to bits. The only bright spot was not waiting for my luggage to be unloaded..

 

On behalf of the group I had secured a great rate at the Intercontinental Hotel. I could not have been happier with this choice. Checking in was a bit unorganized and slow (it was nearly midnight after all). When I stepped up to the desk I told the clerk, “it’s been a really rough day … is this a nice room?” He assured me it was a VERY nice room. Darned if he wasn’t correct. I was on the 22nd floor overlooking the bay. The hotel was convenient to the port, and to places to eat and shop near by. Naturally all I explored was room service and my bed. I think it was a $25 cab ride from the airport to the hotel, and it was $10 from the hotel to port. If I sail out of Miami again…. Strike that, WHEN I sail out of Miami again, I will definitely be at this hotel.

 

Morning view from the hotel:

 

The hotel had a Starbucks in the lobby which I had intended to visit, but I was just too darn excited to get on over to the ship. I checked out at 11:30. The hotel bellman asked if I was traveling alone, then offered to come along with me. Although he was cute, not quite THAT cute.

 

My Taxi pulled right on up to the curb, and a nice porter took my luggage saying he’d deliver it to my cabin later in the day. Okay, I knew he wasn’t going to actually deliver it … but whatever. I was nice, smiled and tipped just to make sure my luggage didn’t go for a swim with the fishies.

[BSQ]

Embarking

I entered the terminal at 12:03 (I checked my cell phone). Security lines were moving well. Got in the queue to check in, which was a bit longish, but also moved well. Up the escalator for a picture. When I told the guy I didn’t want one, he said I could walk on through behind the photographer. Across the walkway and up onto the ship. Smile for the S&S picture and Chester and I have arrived. (They wouldn’t issue Chester a Sign & Sail card although I mentioned he liked boat drinks). A nice lady handed me a map of the Liberty and I set off exploring. According to my cell phone the entire process from Security to Sign & Sail photo took 30 minutes. Wow that was unexpected!

 

After lunch up on the Lido Deck (I’m on west coast time, so let’s call it a brunch), I realized it was about 1:30, which meant I could drop my backpack off in my room. Oh, and the bear. It gets kinda hot toting him around. Some of the details are a bit fuzzy; over excitement and all don’t ya know. I set out taking pictures and finding where things were, but returned to my cabin for I forget what. My suitcases were sitting outside my door. Quel Surprise! I unpacked. Met my cabin steward Neilo, and signed a piece of paper he had on a clipboard. For all I know I agreed to give him half my salary for the next 5 years. <shrug> I found a quiet spot by the aft pool (it took people a while to roam all the way back here) and enjoyed a lil ice cream until it was time for Muster.

 

 

Muster Drill

UGH. I know it’s gotta be done and all, I suggest being fashionably late for it. So the knocking on the doors started with the cabin stewards, now donning neon caps, shouting “Boat Drill. Boat Drill.” I thought they were hollering “BOAT DRINKS” so I rushed to my door. The actual translation, get your bottoms out of this cabin right now and get over to your muster station. I will stand at your doorway until you leave. Seriously, I was in the second row from the wall. It wasn’t too bad but folks PLEASE. Squeeze the cheeks together. No farting. That’s just wrong. Sorry. Someone had to say it. Who ever you were that let lose, shame on you!

[BSQ]

Come Sail Away ….

 

Yeah, you’re signing the song now aren’t ya? As I mentioned, this was a Cruise Critic Group Cruise, Lovin’ Life on Liberty. My first task was to head to the aft pool and begin meeting fellow Lifers … oh and get my T-Shirts from Ed who took care of all that for us! It’s a bit of an odd feeling when you meet someone for the first time, and already know a lot about them! For the next few hours as I met folks the conversations would invariably start with “Where the heck were you last night?” My airport Snafu caused me to miss dinner at Bubba Gumps AND drinks at the Hotel. I will say I’m not fond of the high plexi glass or what ever it is that surrounds some of the higher decks on the liberty. I felt like I was at a hockey game. Met some additional Lifers later in the evening at the Lobby Bar gathering. After some chatting I’m pretty sure I left to relax a little (as if I’ve not been doing that all day) and get ready for dinner.

 

[BSQ]

I am directionally Challenged

 

I openly admit this. I have gotten lost using a navigation system. On a route I drive every day. I set out for the lower level of the Silver Olympian dining room. I dead-ended at the Gold Olympian room not once, but twice. Upper level first time … hey there’s Pugs … wait were not in the same dining room! Second time I was on the lower level. WTH??

 

In my directionally challenged way, I go up to deck 5 and walk. Umm the wrong way. I end up at the Venetian Lounge. Checking my map I see this is at the complete opposite end of where I want to be. Siiiiiigh. Finally I realize this deck goes ALL the way back. Hop in the elevator and go down 2 floors, and FINALLY I am at the silver Olympian dining room. The sign says it’s closed (I’m 20 minutes late). The Maitre’D is patiently listening to some woman repeating the same thing over n over n over again. Oblivious to the fact that she is holding up other diners. Finally her husband looks back, sees all of us, gives an embarrassed look and tells his wife to never mind. Off I go to be seated at my table. To my great surprise I am seated with fellow Lifers. There are Fellow Lifers the right of us and at a table adjacent to us. Oh yay! Family! Now here’s the thing. If any of my fellow lifers are reading this … I AM REALLY BAD WITH NAMES! Gary can vouch for this as I definitely recall introducing myself to him probably 3 times by saying “Hi I don’t think we’ve met.” Bless my heart, eh?

 

FOOD

 

Since I’m at dinner, let’s just talk about the dining room.

 

WTH are the blue things? I felt like I was looking at tail fins from 50-something Chevy’s. Not appalling, since I am a tail fin kinda gal. But still. Our waiter … hmmm I absolutely can’t remember his name, and his assistant Iketut (excuse me if I’ve butchered the spelling), were quite good. How can you not enjoy dinner being served this man ….

 

 

 

Food wise, I only had a couple things I didn’t care for. The Jerk Pork Loin Roast was actually rather bland tasting. One dessert, the chef’s recommendation for the night. It was a raspberry chocolate-layered thing with a little scoop of raspberry sorbet. The sorbet was the best thing on that plate. Some standouts, Grouper with some sort of coconut cream sauce sitting on top of garlicky mashed potatoes. Though the fish, sauce and potatoes were all the same color, it was difficult to tell where the fish ended and the taters began. The Bitter Blanc Bread Pudding was yummy as one the I forget the actual name soufflé. Don’t look at me like that. I already told you I’m not good with names … and it applies to food as well! I enjoyed all the seafood dishes I tried.

 

The music in the dining room was a little bit to sedate for me. Some nights I thought it was going to lull me to sleep. Oh maybe that was from the pre-dinner Cosmos Tommy at the Paparazzi bar had made for me. By the way. You MUST visit Tommy. You will be entertained and also have one of the best darn martinis ever.

 

I had the 8:15 late seating. I think most nights we were done with plenty of time to have a drink before the evening shows. Some nights dinner felt rushed. Or maybe I just ate too fast. :)

 

I never had sit down breakfast in the dining room. I was up on deck with the Lifer Coffee Club. I usually grabbed cold cuts and cheeses from the buffet area. I’ve read a lot of complaints about the coffee … but I thought it was decent enough. Maybe Folgers decent … definitely not Yuban. (told you, entertaining myself).

 

I did enjoy the Deli. Even in my small number of cruises, I look forward to having bagels n lox with a schmear. I wish they’d automatically add in tomato, capers and a slice of red onion and a black olive, but it’s good the way it is. I also tried a Ruben. I’d never had one, but have read people going on n on about em, so I figured what the hey. It was good, just not my kinda sammich. Fish & Chips were indeed good, pizza was okay. Ice cream became an afternoon habit. Odd since I don’t really eat ice cream at home.

 

I’m sure I ate more than this. I know I had some things from the grill. I know I didn’t eat at the buffets … I’m not a buffet kinda gal. Except the first day. It’s coming back to me., I remember the dessert server talking more to Chester than me. THAT BEAR! Sheesh.

 

The cups for beverages were small. Next time I will heed everyone’s advice and bring a bigger cup. Maybe not a BubbaKeg, but something larger.

 

Bars

 

I particularly enjoyed Tommy at the Paparazzi bar. What did y’all have me drinking … Déjà vu. Some citrus-y martini with a splash of champagne. He also makes a mean Cosmo. He was quite generous … I usually had a drink and a half for each one he made me. I kept sipping at my drink and he kept refilling. Gotta love that. Next up during the afternoons at the lobby bar was a tall blonde lady Lithuanian I think. One night, I had to wonder if one of the bartenders hadn’t been taking a nip herself. She poured all the ingredients into the shaker for a Cosmo, started shaking and it was making no noise. It took a minute for her to catch on. Ice hon. needs some ice. Made a mess pouring it too. Tasted okay though, as this die-hard Angels fan raised her glass to the man in the Yankee’s hat at the end of the bar. NY. Not Yet. Not Yours. Next Year. : )

 

I had good service in the Venetian Lounge, but never got bar service up on the Lido Deck. I never really noticed servers outside actually.

 

We had a private cocktail party. I think this really set the tone for our Lifers. The room was abuzz with conversation, everyone having a great time! I don’t know what the drinks were. Red, Orange, Green and Blue. I worked my way through the rainbow then turned to rum & diet coke. Which was a splash of diet coke with a lot of rum. A fellow Lifer had invited our CD, Karl with a K, to join us. I’m still wondering why he was so shy at this party! This was just one of the gatherings our fearless CC group leader Pugs had set up for us.

[BSQ]

CABIN

 

1A #8357. I was traveling solo, and this room was spacious. Truthfully they could have had two beds on the floor in there just fine, but whatever. It took some getting used to sleeping on a twin bed. I’m a little on the tall side, and usually sleep diagonally on beds. I only smashed my knuckles into the wall once whilst trying to flip off the comforter. (as in remove, not give the bird).

 

 

I liked the layout of my cabin, and thought it was plenty roomy. I did have plenty of hangers … but if I’d been traveling with someone else there would not have been enough. One might conclude I may have slightly over packed. Truthfully there were only a couple things I didn’t wear, but I had more vacation yet to come after the cruise. :-P

 

I had plenty of room on the shelves in the bathroom for all my stuff. The hair dryer, though small, was actually pretty good. Not as wimpy as I’d expected. I did bring my own simply because I need a diffuser.

 

My steward Neilo was wonderful. All the stewards on this deck were quite nice. Each and everyone always greeted me with a hello and good morning as I walked by. Course they were also always apologizing for being in the way, when I was more feeling bad for getting in their way! After all they are working, I’m on VACATION!!

 

My towel animals kept Chester company. We were both unsure about one of them.

 

Neilo was my knight in a black vest. On the last night of the cruise as I was getting ready for dinner, I was about to put some mouse in my hair. I did this as I do every day of my life. Take off my pinky ring (a souvenir from my birthday cruise), set it on the counter … ack ack ack!!! The world went into slow motion as I saw my blue diamond ring slip from my fingers, bounce off the edge of the sink, take two swirls around the sink and slide right on down the drain!!!!!

 

I pulled off the sink stopper but all I saw was a toothpaste cap. OH NOOOOOO!!! I called Neilo and he showed up lightening fast. Took a look and went and got the plumber. 5 minutes later my ring was cleaned off and back on my pinky. Catastrophe averted. Neilo saves the night!!

[BSQ]

Entertainment

 

 

I already mentioned our Cruise Director was Karl with a K. All I can say is thank goodness he doesn’t have an irritating voice. His announcements were always pleasant to hear, even if I really wasn’t listening to the content. I read people taking cruises because they like a particular CD. I never understood this. I do now. He is a genuine man. But I don’t know that I’d take a cruise just because of him.

 

For the most part I find the activities around the ship a bit too cheesy for me, so I opt not to participate. I did enjoy the fiddle player (I play one myself) in the lobby one afternoon (hmm it might have been evening). I did like the Music Boardwalk. Up on Lido, Caribbean Vibe playing Reggae was a favorite of mine, that always puts/keeps me in vacation mode.

 

The shows were okay. I did not care for the first comedian Jeff Laub. I didn’t really find him funny, and judging from the amount of folks who walked out, my opinion was not the minority. The Wonderful World review show was just okay in my book. I felt like I was watching a high school production. The one thing that irked me, the singers got off from the track, so it was very obvious they were lip-syncing. That was disappointing. With these first two shows being a bit lackluster, I hoped I wouldn’t be disappointed with the days to come

 

Puck, the hypnotist was certainly entertaining. The people that participate obviously are what make this show. I skipped Laub’s adult show. .

 

Another night was a Juggler. I’ve only been on two cruises, and I’ve now seen this guy twice. Go figure. Although it was the same exact show I’d already saw I enjoyed him more this time than last. Might have had to do with the pina coladas or the fact that I was sitting where I could actually see how high he was juggling stuff.

 

Allyn Ball, another comedian, was hilarious. Both his evening and adult show were good. The family show was probably borderline adult … and he lets you know up front that he might push it a bit. Karl’s music tribute was good. He does a mean Louis Armstrong.

 

 

Let’s see. What else. I think I’m forgetting some of the stage shows entertainment.

 

Other things, the Marriage Show, well the couples weren’t all that entertaining so the show was a bit lackluster. Coffee & Chat with Karl was little attended and actually quite nice. It was very informal, outside the casino on the sofas. We had the opportunity to just chat and ask him almost anything about working on a cruise ship. When all was said and done Karl agreed to adopt me. He may not remember, but I have witnesses.

[BSQ]

Ports of Call

 

Half Moon Cay

 

 

Here we are at Half Moon Cay. My goodness this is a beautiful beach! Calm clear warm waters (almost too warm to be refreshing). I took the Eco Lagoon Tour ($36). It was really nice. We boarded a glass bottom boat and rode around the lagoon learning about the environment and sea inhabitants. I liked that it was very hands on. Our guide would scoop out creatures from the ocean and we passed them around the boat. I found it educational and fun, I think younger kids would enjoy it.

 

 

When we were done with the tour, lunch was being served, so the truck dropped us off there. It’s simple grilled stuff, hotdogs and hamburgers, sides, cookies, etc. Nothing fancy, just beach food. I enjoyed it but could have done without the lady who sat down across from me and complained about EVERYTHING. Lady, you’re on vacation and you’re at a beautiful beach. So sorry you couldn’t open the mayo packet. CHILL.

 

FWIW, the foot washers really don’t get the sand off your feet. I returned to the ship about 2:30. The tender lines were not too bad at that time, but I hear it got much worse.

 

Now as the Lifers know, I have said I hate the beach. I hate the sand. I hate salt water. I hate seaweed and I hate little fishies brushing up against my legs. But, I also live at the beach. HMC was a nice relaxing day and should I ever have the opportunity to visit it again, I would go willingly. Part of why I did an excursion here is spending the entire day at the beach holds no novelty for me. But I do like it in small doses.

 

St. Thomas

 

This totally wasn’t what I was expecting. I think I had it too built up in my head. Make no mistake I enjoyed myself, but there are some things I would have done differently. When I got off the ship it promptly started raining. I took the little shopping shuttle to the shops there are port, looked around briefly then went to the taxi stand to head downtown. ($4 cab ride). This is the one stop I’d committed to shopping. Mostly cause I’ve heard so much about what great deals there are here. I work in the buying side of retail. I was expecting shopping nirvana. My perception was a bunch of tourist shops that carry the same thing. Prices weren’t all that fantastic to me. But again, I’m used to shopping sample sales or getting vendor freebies, and having an employee discount. The one item I was not leaving St. Thomas without was a watch for BubbaQ. I’d wanted to give him one for Christmas, but he couldn’t make up his mind on what he wanted. :rolleyes: Just before I’d left he sent me several pictures of watches that he liked. They all looked the same to me, but his selections ranged from a couple hundred for a Seiko to a couple thousand for a Tag. Fat chance on the Tag BubbaQ. He ended up with a Seiko … a new model we’ve not seen on the mainland yet.

 

Can we talk? I had to work way too hard to get a decent price on the watch I settled on. It was fun but exhausting. I needed to refuel. I’d passed Glady’s in my roaming, so I headed back there for a nice relaxing and tasty lunch. (lobster sandwich, and tried fungi … but didn’t like that stuff).

 

 

I enjoy aquariums, so my next stop was Coral World. Cost was $12 from downtown to get there. I think the cab driver was miffed that I was alone, and therefore his only fare for this long drive. $18 to get into Coral World and well, it really wasn’t worth it. I was a bit disappointed in everything. One exhibit that started out looking really cool I had to hurry my way through because the building smelled so strongly of god only knows what. (along the lines of paint thinner or ether!). The aquarium wasn’t as hands on as I would have liked. Since I was there, I stopped at Coki beach. Way too crowded for my taste. Getting a ride back into town was a bit challenging because I was traveling solo. I did hook up with a driver that was there to pick up 4 other people. Ended up with a short tour of the island, and then back to the cruise terminal.

 

IF I make it back to St. Thomas, I’d explore one of the beautiful beaches, or head over to St. John. I’d also not roam around alone. Not that I felt unsafe, it was just hard to catch rides.

 

Oh. BubbaQ really likes his watch. My only other purchase a larimar hook bracelet. Other things I was hoping to find were actually cheaper on the ship. A major shopping let down.

 

Oh! Nearly forgot. Clearing customs here actually went quickly. I think it took me longer to get from my cabin to the hot n cool disco, than it did to actually go through the line and show my passport.

 

San Juan

 

 

I enjoyed San Juan more than I thought I would. It was hot and humid as all get out, but the day could not have been more beautiful. A fellow Lifer had put together an information booklet for us to do the historic walking tour of San Juan on our own. (thanks Jjay!) Okay, a lot of the stuff had plaques but they were in Spanish. With the help of other Lifers we could kind of decipher some of it, what I couldn’t understand I made up. That’s the fun of Q-Travel! LOL. The Fort, El Moro, was really quite interesting to roam around. After a while we rendezvoused back at the entrance, and spread out in separate directions. Walking along a bit more, in the now scorching sun, we came upon a Ben & Jerry’s. All I can say is at that moment, it was the best darn ice cream ever. Chocolate something or other (remember, I don’t like chocolate). One thing I thought was cool here is they made their waffle cones fresh. You don’t see that everywhere. Anyway, sitting in the AC and enjoying the cold ice cream, refreshed me for the next leg of the journey. We just kind of happened on the Coach store, so it was time to do some shopping. At one point I had a file with the cost and list prices of both Dooney & Coach handbags but in my relocation misplaced my jump drive. Coach prices I found to be just ok. Dooney prices were slightly better. I did make a Dooney purchase, picking up a handbag that I’ve not seen on the mainland. It was on clearance so even better. On my credit card statement this purchase came across as a foreign transaction. Not sure what’s up with that. After calling AmEx they assured me it was not a foreign transaction it had to do with the way Dooney puts the transaction through. No additional charges were incurred. This is the only store where this happened. From here I set out on my own to find something sparkly to go with a Sophia Fiori ring (yeah the one that went down the drain), that I’d bought on my previous cruise. Some folks collect spoons or charms from their travels, blue diamonds are a good alternative … don’t you think? I didn’t find anything reasonable. As with St. Thomas, I really wasn’t impressed with the prices here in San Juan. I didn’t wear that ring while shopping (tactical), and couldn’t even get them down to the price I’d paid for it at the same store in a different port. (it was cheaper on the ship)! Sheesh.

 

I made an obligatory stop at Hard Rock … I wasn’t looking for it, just happened upon it. Headed back to the ship very hot n sweaty…. Don’t really remember much after that. I would have liked more time in San Juan. I had paid for admission to both forts ($5) but didn’t have enough time to explore the second one and still get some shopping in. I might like to take a land vacation here, though a local lady I’d chatted with said that you really don’t need more than a day … there’s not that much to see and do. I disagree with her, but I think that’s kinda what happens when you live someplace touristy. You are seldom a tourist in your own town. (I’m guilty of that)

[BSQ]

Grand Turk

 

 

 

As much as I love the beach :rolleyes: I knew in Grand Turk I needed to be in the water snorkeling. I took the Carnival Reef & Rays excursion. It was worth every penny. I don’t know how many people were on the tour with me, but it wasn’t crowded on the boat, and once in the water we were able to spread out along the reef however we wanted. We were the only group at this particular spot. The tour guides took time to explain how to snorkel for the folks who’d never done it, and made sure they were OK in the water. Fruit punch and water are provided. After about 40 minutes we headed over to where the stingrays were. I did this part of the tour to conquer some major heebie-jeebies. I hate touching fish, or having them brush up against me while I am swimming in the ocean. The stingrays are very soft. They felt nothing like I expected.

 

 

I did the morning tour, when I was done I went back to the ship to shower and change, visited the shore excursion desk to book my airport transportation (no lines!), then explored the cruise center a bit. I went to Margaretville just to say I did, then walked down a ways to a less crowded beach area. The beaches were very rocky. My crocs came in hand. YES I WEAR THOSE THINGS. When I visit again, I’d skip margarita Ville all together, do some other snorkel excursion then venture around town.

 

Before we’d left Grand Turk I decided to book and exotic manicure. BIG MISTAKE.

[BSQ]

Other Shippy things ….

 

Spa - I paid $45 for an exotic manicure or some such thing. It was nice except for the manicure part. Got the worst manicure ever, the polish bubbled and lifted a day later. The manicurist also dug an implement under my nail causing me to wince in pain that fingertip was sore to the touch for 3 days. Ow, Ow, Ow! Next time, well there will be no next time. On a positive note, I did have a nice view while leaving Grand Turk. I think Carnival could improve this particular spa service.

 

Laundry

my cabin was next to the laundry room. The noise didn’t drift into my cabin. All I ever heard was people holding VERY loud conversations in the hallway in-front of their cabins. Go inside folks. $2 is the magic number in the laundry. $2 for a load of wash. $2 to dry a load. $2 for a box of detergent or softener. 3 washers, 6 dryers, one iron and ironing board.

 

On Deck for the Cure

 

I started doing Race for the Cure races 5 years ago. For me it is a very gratifying experience. I was surprised at the low turnout. Now I know everyone who donates doesn’t have to show up to walk. But come on folks, you could get out there and cheer us on! It’s kind of boring doing 9 laps around the little track.

 

Debark

Having missed my flight at the start of this trip I was really really nervous about missing it again. From FL I was heading to ATL for the weekend, time was a precious commodity. I opted for self depark. My luggage piggy packs and hooks together (two pieces 25” & 21”), a backpack and Chester. In other words, perfectly manageable. I had gone up deck for one last Coffee Club meeting. When self debark was called I went back to my room and MY ROOM KEY QUIT WORKING Darn. Guess I have to stay here. But then flashes of missing my flight popped in my head so I found Neilo to open my door.

 

Down the elevator, across the lobby, and I was in the Queue to leave. Just as I walked up Karl opened up a line, so I guess having family on board pays off. (thanks Uncle Karl) LOL. The lines at Immigration moved quickly. This took all of 5 minutes. I exited the building and headed to the transfer bus.

 

 

Carnival Airport Transfer

I had an 11:44am flight out of FLL. Prior to sailing, Carnival would not book the transfer for any flight earlier than Noon. On the ship they didn’t ask for any details. $24 one-way. I waited on the first bus for maybe 10 minutes. We it some traffic on the way, and check in at FLL for Air Tran was painfully slow and unorganized. Even still I was sitting at the gate by 9am.

 

What I’d do differently

 

* I’d plan better. The relocation and hectic job pace put port planning on the back burner.

 

* I’d bring a multi outlet strip. Not that I needed more than the one outlet, but my camera battery charger didn’t fit in the outlet because of the lights that stuck out above it.

 

* I’d read the capers more. I just glanced at them I’m still not gung ho about having to keep track of time on vacation … so there were probably things around the ship I might have missed that I might have enjoyed.

 

* I’d bring a casual sweater or hoodie. A lot of the time I was cold … even in fairly open places like the lobby. I am not used to air-conditioning, so I’m always cold.

 

* I’d bring fewer shoes :eek: NAH, just seeing if you are paying attention. I wore all 5 pair that I brought, multiple times.

 

* I’d try to experience more of the cheesy stuff .. just cause.

 

I think that’s the highlights. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading my novella. Or was it a Novelette. Clicking on any of the pictures posted here will take you to my full album.

 

Happy Sailing folks.

[boundingmaynard]

What a great review, well thought out and well written. I wish I had the patience to do stuff like this.

 

I really enjoyed this group as well, we met folks from all corners of the country many of whom I will never forget.

 

Thanks Lorraine for doing what needed to be done and posting this review.

[poptart]

I'm enjoyed your review and pics. Thank for taking the time to do it

[cjkumbaya]

Most excellent review - really enjoyed your photos! Thanks so much for sharing.

[Guest Mary49]

Thanks BSQ. What a great review and with great pictures of your vacation. I love to cruise solo also. Mary49

[BSQ]

What a great review, well thought out and well written. I wish I had the patience to do stuff like this.

 

I really enjoyed this group as well, we met folks from all corners of the country many of whom I will never forget.

 

Thanks Lorraine for doing what needed to be done and posting this review.

 

 

Thanks! You've met me. You should know patience is not my middle name. :D It was a pleasure meeting you and all your family. The Lifers are a special group indeed!

[BSQ]

oops! be gentle. It's was actually the 7/26 sailing. I realized it too late to change my title. In my defense, my vacation started 7/25. It's rough getting back to real life. :rolleyes:

[SandyToes1978]

Thanks so much! I enjoyed your review. These kind of things help keep me somewhat sane during these last 27 days....;)

[Lib0007]

Thanks so much for your review. Loved your 'novel', the pictures, and especially enjoyed your sense of humor.