Twibes

Interesting. To be fair I did say something nice too. I didn't know that Go Pro did that. It just stood out to see dozens of pictures with that effect.

Nor did I.. First GoPro but its higher pixel than my old Nikon that's for sure. That lenses was on it already but its working well for the most part.

I can be wrong :eek::p but I think a lot of the pictures were taken from his GoPro and that's why they mainly Fish eye.

Glad someone paid attention. MurphDogg this is a review, meant for those interested in Liberty or the status of the TA. I'm not here to cater to your lense preference and I'm definitely not a photographer by trade. One childhood lesson comes to mind here: If you have nothing nice to say don't say it at all. ;)

Charluch it's definitely the GoPro as I'm not lugging two cameras around. Thanks for remembering!

After leaving La Palma, the Halloween festivities began for any who wished to take part. Fortunately for me, we did participate in the Halloween parade and after party, therefor have barely any images to share. I'm sure, and embarrassed enough to say at least a few other Cruise Critic members took enough photos that maybe they will share! Without further ado however, here is a photo of us prior to the Halloween parade down the Promenade (Which was pretty amusing!)

We were obviously Mr & Mrs Incredible. There is something slightly awkward about walking around a full cruise ship in spandex but, we were told we were in the running later that night for funniest costume. Alas, a # of people won for Cutest, Funniest, etc. and a3Lakes and her hubby won for the injured Construction Workers AKA:Zombies. I won't go into detail other than to say Halloween on a cruise ship was fun enough that I wouldn't mind doing it again!

Soon I'll update you on all of our Sea Days to date since Saturday. I will say the water had been a bit bumpy but we've had sunny weather and temps near 80 degrees every day...a dream TransAtlantic forecast!

Sailing away from La Palma:

Immediately following our exciting world of wine festivities, the buses, and I mean at least 5 of the suckers, took the obligatory stop at a remote mountainside shop where locals sold pottery. I don't recall seeing this in the tour description but I imagine it's where they make a few months salary from us. Here are a few random shots which felt like a sidewalk within a hillside observatory:

Back of the business where clay and water were located

I got distracted at this point as a neat little doggy similar to a mixed Beagle was walking around greeting everyone. There was only enough room in this shop and sidewalk to comfortably accommodate 10 people but 5 buses had to make way! I still found time to pet the little guy until he napped a few minutes. (sorry, no dog photo.) If you ever visit, the puppy is called Niko.

After this tour it was a race through the country-side of La Palma (AKA All of it) and back onto the ship for lunch and then sail-a-way. Now I'll start working on our evening's Halloween festivities!

We now arrived at the Winery portion of our tour where we could see the fascinating tanks (Insert my grin here) and basement of the business. Following these breathtaking views (Grinning again) we went upstairs for a brief tasting:

The outside was the best of the view here:

I just can't stop sharing these pictures as they turned out pretty amazing!

I'm pretty sure, ok I'm 100% confident that these safety regulations wouldn't fly in the US because people can't watch their children that long but it was pretty adventurous knowing nothing more than 6 inches of rock kept me standing there (Look beyond my left foot!) After this long walk, and seeing that other people failed to even let a blind person using a walking stick get through, it was time to load up on the buses. Hopefully my take on humanity would improve later in the day! I'm not sure what it is, but people are in a hurry to get nowhere. We should stop, take a deep breath, and realize where we are...because I never thought I'd be standing on a Volcano in the Canaries people!

A word to the wise here if you ever find the time and ability to be on this volcano: It's a felony to reach down and attempt to 'take' a piece of rock from it... No, we didn't find out personally, however did see someone else testing the theory!

Walking up to the Volcano

DAY 6: Friday, Oct. 31, 2014

(HALLOWEEN Extravaganza)

Today we docked in La Palma, Canaries. It was a pretty spectacular view rolling in as you could see the rolling hills and cliff sides. I was adamant that King Kong lives here, because I saw the movie and I know King Kong territory when I see it.

Docking upon arrival:

I'd like to make note that for almost a full week of sailing and making port stops, the ocean was a dream. The weather couldn't have cooperated any more nicely as the ocean (as you can see above) was as calm as being in the Caribbean. Perhaps the weather gods were watching us or maybe it's just luck, either way docking was never an issue this week and travel was as smooth as silk.

We were impressed with the quality of the tour buses seen from our Balcony here, as they all appeared fairly new and extremely clean. Knowing we had an actual excursion this morning, we showered and prepared for the chaos otherwise known as 'sheep herding' that was about to take place. Unfortunately our neighbors on board (a3Lakes and the hubby) weren't located yet this early in the a.m. but we anticipated with poor judgement we'd see them on the bus (Didn't happen.)

We all gathered in the Platinum Theater on Deck 3 and got our bus #'s. After waiting about 20 minutes or so, our bus #10 if I recall, left for the Volcano and Wine Tour. I anticipated being strapped into a climbing harness and tossed into the Volcano much like Joe vs.The Volcano. (If you were born after 1985 you probably don't get it, Kelcey didn't either lol) Of course, it wasn't that type of excursion as you can imagine it was more handicap friendly. So off we loaded onto the tour bus as we got our first taste of being herded around like cattle..I just hate that feeling but it's the nature of the excursion beast!

Our first of two stops, the Volcano!

After walking by the entrance and into the built-in dungeon, we sat through a 10 minute video explaining how this island and Volcano came to be.

Following this 1990's movie footage, we were off to climb the Everest of Tenerife! Ok, I kid I kid, but I really wanted to climb down into this puppy and see the original hole..it's a guy thing. Take note that the side of the man made rock sidewalk of this Volcano is surrounded by a lightly hanging railing to prevent falls into the Volcano. Yet, look to the opposite side and it's every man for himself to the bottom of the island!

We took some good video while still docked in Tenerife which we consider our favorite time of being in port... it's the "People doing their darnest to make the ship leave late" routine. I say this in humor because sometimes it's not our fault however, nothing beats watching people run down a 1 mile pier when it's 4:30pm and All Aboard time was .... 4:30pm. You have an entire port side balcony array of people waving and yelling "YOU CAN DO IT!" to people. Chivalry at this point went right out the window people: Husbands running 1/4 mile ahead of wives, women taking off flip flops, people in an all out sprint having to stop and breath just steps from the ship. I'm telling you, you can't script this stuff! Unfortunately we can't post the video here as obviously I'm in the middle of the Atlantic! Just trust me when I say, awesome footage.

Sail away from Tenerife was another amazing sight that makes you ask yourself "Will I ever see this again?" I think that we enjoyed Tenerife slightly more than Cadiz as it's a more open layout and a more relaxed pace in the streets.. but Cadiz and Tenerife were a privilege to walk through.

After leaving this amazing area of the city, we headed back to the ship for some quality Sun Deck time. I took a few random shots if you're interested in seeing Deck 12 of the Pool Deck on Liberty:

Solarium from a higher view:

Ironically I feel the police had a presence of about 4 officers on that block for a reason. One block down there was quiet a noisy group that appeared to be picketing/protesting in front of a business (My memory escapes me here) but I believe it was called Maya or Malaya. They were shaking cow bells and blowing loud, as I call them 'I'm being assaulted' whistles. Normally this wouldn't annoy even me, but when you sit at a nice cafe to enjoy espresso, sangria, and tapas it sure beats on your innermost ear nerves.

Eating at a cafe:

Here you can see our tomato and tuna Tapas, it was great!

For an entire pitcher of Sangria, espresso + milk, Tapas, and Dogfish entree we spent $23 Euros. I should also note that at this point, Kelcey got great deals on jewelry scoring a necklace for $7 Euros, and bracelets for $3 Euros each. I on the other hand only looked for Cafe (Espresso) deals!

There was a large area that much resembled a water fountain area in an inner city was found here, blocks from our pier entrance. It was a great area and we found people cooling off their feet (As Kelcey opted to do) and just enjoying the scenery. I tried making her walk deeper but she must've thought I had alterior motives:

Kelcey wanted to show the world (Her work friends here!) that there is an H&M store in Tenerife

I was intelligent enough myself to ask in Spanish if I could have a photo taken with these fine Policia of Tenerife. It's a brotherhood kind of thing, they had no issue at all, and I felt they looked pretty professional yet intimidating which is good.

More shots during our walking adventure in Tenerife

Sorry for getting lazy, I can't outlast these seasoned AARP members who can drink far past the hours I can handle! :D Carrying on now from where we left off:

DAY 5: Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014

Today we were in Tenerife, and as you could see from the earlier picture / video, the weather was perfect. Kelcey and I again, much as we chose to do in Cadiz, opted to go off the beaten path. We did not want a tour bus frenzy, sheep herding mentality, or crazy crowds of people to enjoy this beautiful place, so we headed off on a Shrek journey into the unknown.

We were off the ship just 30 minutes after the rest of the large groups but the difference in crowds was evident. We had no wait disembarking nor ran into any groups or buses along the way. Although I did want to be a man about this and walk off the pier, Kelcey made me realize it was actually a good mile long pier that would've in fact brought about my child size dose of whining. So here is where the adventure began.

Here you can see just half of the pier we'd have to travel:

We asked crew member which bus was the 'Free Shuttle' bus to get off the pier, and they directed us to the bus right next to us. This was a large bus similiar to a tour bus,although it did cater to wheelchairs. Due to being handicapped accessible it had only about 12 seats in the back. We took a seat and patiently waited while they boarded a wheel chair. A few minutes in,the driver stated that due to having to 'Wait' for wheelchairs to fill the bus, we should walk off if we could and wait for another bus. We took the hint that it could be awhile and headed back off toward the ship ramps to find where the next shuttle would be. This didn't take long, as we walked to the outside diameter of a group of folks 3x my age who yelled at us "There is a line ya know you don't just walk in!" We had to laugh, because we had no idea where we were even walking and sure weren't in line, and to add insult to injury the previous driver pulled away just as we stepped off. Sneaky guy!

So we got in the back of the line for this now 'new' and what we called the 'Mean' bus and waited. You could hear the huffing and puffing of the dragons a few people in front of us as they were told the shuttle was full... and of course I laughed and cheered that we were not destined to be on this mean bus! The couple in front of us agreed and said we'll all be getting on the 'Nice' person bus soon (Which of course was 2 minutes later... oh the horror the horror right) Patience is a virture.

Walking the main streets of Tenerife and the Market Square:

Walking on the roof of the main Port Information Building

Anddddd let's take a selfie:

Here is a view of Tenerife:

I'm a bit wiped out from walking today so I won't be able to post a full thread about today (That will come tomorrow or Saturday) but here are a quick views of how great our weather and day was:

Sunrise Port Side

Pulling into Port in Tenerife

View of the MSC ship and Liberty from Information Center

I'll give a hint as to todays sights since I'm not able to post yet, we saw in the balcony photo above that I posted first at least 5-7 (What we believe to be) dolphins in the distance surfacing! Prior to going to sleep I'll also give you all a quick video clip of the amazing view of Tenerife from Port.

Steelers fans from New Jersey checking in... :)

Just stumbled onto your LIVE from the Liberty thread and decided that I will follow along with the rest... We will be sailing on Liberty from Bayonne next July (9-night Caribbean) and are really looking forward to it. I love the sights, great pictures and the fact that you had such a great adventure on your own in Caldiz, sounds like fun! Sometimes you see more when you are lost, than you would if you plan. :) Now I am touring vicariously through you and Kelcey, since we have no plan YET to get to Europe.

 

Contrary to some of the things I have read on CC recently, Liberty looks to be in great shape from your pictures. I REALLY need to take reviews on CC with that grain of salt that I have heard about.

 

Thanks for taking the time to do the live review... love it so far and your sense of humor makes it an interesting and entertaining read!

 

GO STEELERS!~

I appreciate your feedback. I can attest personally in my experience and views that Liberty is in excellent condition. I don't see anything in our JS cabin nor the public areas what-so-ever that immediately made me look closer. If you want a specific photo of something specific, just ask.After tomorrows port stop in La Palma, we'll be at sea for 7 FULL days in a row which leaves plenty of ship photography time.

I will be wearing a Steelers shirt this weekend as well! :D

Twibes - enjoying your review. Thanks for doing that. Please say hello to our cruising buddies "Tugboat" (Curtis & Kathy) from Linda and Arthur. Thank you.

That's awesome that you know Tugboat! I will pass this message along tomorrow (It's almost bedtime for us since we're hiking the volcano tomorrow in La Palma!)

Does a bartender named Lucille still work in the Champagne Bar? She was one of our favorite employees on that ship, and I wrote a long letter to RCCL explaining how highly we thought of her.

Is she a very petite girl, brunette/brown hair, glasses and extremely hardworking with a Russian Accent by chance? If so... then it must be her! I'll double check the name tomorrow but if in fact it is the same person, she's our favorite as well.

I should add that our room attendant's name is Camelot and he looks like a linebacker for the NFL. Excellent guy, extremely friendly, and always stops to have 5 minute conversations with us.. you've won the lottery if you get him on the Liberty (Deck 9, Port side).

I'm following too Linda! Hi Tug Hi Kathy!!!!!!!! Is the poem still there?

BecciBook, if you mean the poem that just popped out of my head yesterday it's still there, or here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=44582917&postcount=56

One of our favorite places to get a Martini, Wine, or Cocktail this week thus far has been the Champagne bar in the Promenade. Even though it gets more crowded than a starbucks or McDonalds drive-thru combined, it's worth the few minutes of patience to get something here.

Few shots of the area today:

(Chocolate Martini & Razzle Dazzle Martini)

As we did yesterday, we also enjoyed Sushi and casual dining at Jade & The Wind Jammer tonight as the menu in the main dining room wasn't what we were craving. I'm sure everything there would've been fantastic though so I'm not degrading anything served there tonight!

Tonight was also the Welcome Back party for all Crown & Anchor members. Although it wouldn't be my first or second choice, it was held in Studio B AKA: Ice Rink. The line began about 20 minutes early and it was hotter than a sauna in that hallway. Once we were in, with typical RCCL Fanfair, they had plenty of drinks and champagne ready for the guests. Kelcey and I were happy to grab 2 bar height seats near the back of the studio and a 3rd seat was available to our side. Now, here is where our amusement came into place for the evening. I'm as guilty as anyone for going to a Welcome Back show knowing you get a free drink or two, but let me tell you, there is someone sharing this ships space with us tonight who needs to find Bob. I'm sure those of you who know what meeting that is are understanding me here... aka: A little alcohol detachment!

I believe a lady much older than us utilized this 'sitting and waiting' time to drink as many alcoholic beverages as her liver could process. It was like Hells kitchen only Hells Liver. She must be a competitor because she downed 2 champagnes and 4 mixed drinks (at least 12oz in size each) in under 15 minutes. The show hadn't even started and she was gone. Seriously, who walks up to the table and takes 6 drinks..please enlighten me! If I knew her room # I'd call the medical staff to give her a liver transplant tonight. Hope she has the bottled water package tomorrow!

Sorry for this blurry shot but here is the Welcome Back environment:

After all of this excitement, it was time to relax back in the room where I type to you now. Here is our night time friend, Tipsy the Elephant as well as a view of the size of our room. It's only 8:30pm now so we may catch a parade soon and some other activities. Tomorrow morning we arrive in Tenerife at 8:00am where we plan on walking the streets, legally that is! Stay tuned!

Thanks guys / gals for your input. I knew when we were leaving Cadiz the ship pushed away a few feet, and then returned right back against the dock. Personally, I think we should've left! :o

Let's get to today:

DAY 4: Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014

- I woke-up this morning and heard such a chatter, a girl, a fairy, who knows and what's it matter!

- I came to life just as fast as could be, to hear a high pitch voice squealing at me.

- "Tim wake-up for we're going to be late, today we have so much stacked up on our plate!"

- Kelcey was hyper and in a big tiff, for she thought that the clock said "you're late it's like 10!"

-Too bad for her that in fact she was wrong, cause the clocks got turned back, it was early, I could've slept so long!

- So to my dismay I was already showered, and Kelcey then said "oh no big deal just go back to bed, flick the lights, cut the power.

- I said "H$ll no I'm awake now my dear" and then began the day sipping expresso and then beer.

This morning's weather was warm, lightly breezy, and overcast. The good news is that for a TransAtlantic the water is amazing. The sun was trying to beam through the horizin for most of the morning:

We spent time today drinking coffee and grabbing some breakfast in the Wind Jammer and consuming it on our nice sized JS balcony. Afterward, I was off for some more Espresso while Kelcey occupied her time online (Guys we all know we aren't aloud on electronic devices around the ladies on vacation so isn't this unfair!)

Our first event today was a Bar Mixology gathering at the Schooner Bar. This only lasted 30 minutes but was very informative on the history and originating location of the MaiTai, Cosmopolitan, and Margarita. Do you know the significance of the worm in the Tequila you drink? Shout out your answers and I'll tell you if you're right tomorrow. This went well for the first 15 minutes, until the lurkers sneaked up and walked right up in front of many of us. There they stood while taking drinks and then walking away, so we were forced to wait a short few seconds longer while they brought more out. None the less, nothing can ruin a trip for us so we just laugh it off, stare a bit, and move forward.

Bar Mixology:

Immediately after this mixology / intoxication finale, we walked a few feet into the Smoke House...AKA: Casino. Here Mike was kind enough to organize a well run Slot Pull. Each member present put in a $15 donation and then a few pints of blood and prayed for the best. We had a good turnout, however in the end wound up $2 less than breaking even per person. All in all a good time to meet, drink, and be merry. Also a Happy birthday to a3Lakes today (As well as another young lady in the group who I cannot remember at the moment!)

Suffering the loss of our bubblegum funds, we found our way back to the Pool Deck where to our delight, the sun broke through for a few hours. Again, this was great weather that we hadn't expected! Unfortunately there were not enough willing seniors to participate in the Pelvic Crusher Contest. I'm sorry, I meant in the Belly Flop contest! I can admit that we were disappointed as we had prime seating and video ready to roll on this catastrophic yet hysterical event. This was probably for the better though as I saw no splints, stretchers, or medical personnel on stand-by for the bone breaking malpractice suits to follow!

Oh how exciting!

 

We'll be boarding the day you get to Fort Lauderdale. I know its always a mess when a ship arrives after a TA. Will you be posting the morning of debarkation, about how long it's taking? I don't want to leave my house too early (we live 30 minutes from the port) if there are major delays like in 2012 and 2010!

I can easily post a quick update the morning we depart so you have an idea as to the status of cleanup :D!