lost in thought

Posting this now for anyone needing the information in the future. My mom talked to the pharmacist about transporting the eye drops. He said to keep them on ice and as long as they are kept cold they will be ok to refreeze once. A thermos or yeti bottle with ice would work fine and refilling the ice as needed at each layover. That's a relief. And what I was hoping the answer was going to be. Leave it to me to make things more difficult than they need to be. Now to find out what other preparations she's been procrastinating on. Nothing like prepping one's self for a cruise and someone else for a different trip while trying to keep it all straight. Happy Holidays and merry cruising to everyone!

She's not a cruiser, that's me. But I had wondered if any cruisers had the issue of of trying to transport serum tears (aka Autologous serum drops). Between flights and layovers, it's a long travel time but she has a freezer available once she gets to Malaysia. And once the bottles thaw, they are only good for a week. Dry ice on a plane means contacting the airlines and getting approval, I can't make the calls for her due to my hearing and she won't do it ("too much hassle with contacting multiple airlines"). My thought process at this point is to make ice cubes with the eye drop bottles in them and put them and more ice in a yeti bottle. Once I get the mold, I can test it out with her empty drop bottles. The only other option I can think of would be shipping them, but from some cursory research, there's a lot of hoops and red tape to go through to ship them. Sorry to dump this on y'all here, but I really want her to be able to go on this trip because it's probably going to be her last trip before mobility issues stop her from travelling. I'm hoping the pharmacy that makes the drops has some ideas, or someone here thinks of something that I haven't.

She doesn’t get them shipped to her, the pharmacy that makes them is close enough to pick them up. She’s going to ask them how to transport them. Shipping them to the destination has a lot of hoops to go through. I’ve got a couple of ideas I’m going to test out to see how they work out. I’ll post if they work, I’m sure someone else will need that info at some point

My Mom is 70 with severe dry eye and will be taking a trip in a few weeks and needs to transport enough serum tears to last a month. These must remain frozen through 35 hour travel time. I've recommended to her to ship them to destination, but she would like to have them with her because she doesn't trust shipping to another country (Malaysia). Does anyone have any ideas on how to transport them while keeping them frozen? If it was only a week or two trip, an insulin cooler would work.

I don't know how well it will work on mostly or more gray hair, but overtone color is a coloring conditioner instead of a dye. They do have natural colors as well as the fantasy colors. I've used the browns and the black and it covers my handful of white strands. And if the fantasy colors are something anyone is interested in, they work best as upkeep between coloring.

Tell her cruising gluten free is possible if careful. I'm a big fan of looking at menus to decide which cruise line to go on for the itinerary that I want. I've been on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, NCL, and Celebrity. Carnival servers acted like it was a big hassle to deal with me and won't sail with them again for that and other reasons. RC, NCL, and Celebrity I would sail again. Although, for my tastes, NCL and Celebrity had better food.

I am gluten intolerant and was on the Bliss last year. I had plenty of choices (even with being a bit of a picky eater on top of the intolerance) in the MDR and specialty dining. Some of the sides were substituted for grilled vegetables. I ate lunch in Taste and Savor most days and the rare occasion that I went to the buffet was fine. I don't know how severe your mother's gluten allergy is, but to be safe from cross contamination, probably stay away from the buffet until she's used to identifying potential contamination. If she does go to the buffet, ask what is safe. If the servers in the MDRs and specialty restaurants aren't sure what can be adapted to be gluten free, they would ask the chef. Only one time was I told it couldn't be adapted. The food was good. I didn't have many choices for desserts, but that was because I don't like desserts with fruit. (sweetened fruit is just too sickeningly sweet) She will need to be proactive though, no matter what cruise line she ever goes on. Call customer service and let them know about the allergy so the ingredients can be ordered. Fill out the form from the access desk, customer service can email it. Inform the Maitre d' upon embarkation. Inform the waiter at dinner and then order for the next night before leaving.

I'm going to be on the Joy at Christmas. I'll be travelling solo, so not interested in the kids programs. What are some things to expect? Like what activities and decorations are typical. Should I bring an ugly sweater? Also, is there singing during the show "Elements"? Thanks

I bring along an old pair of glasses in case of accidents. I have a hard time finding glasses that fit properly (kids glasses are too small and adult glasses are too big), so I have a fear being near the railing and my glasses sliding off. I'm very near sighted and like being able to see more than just colored blobs. I don't like the eyewear retainers, they make me itch. KT tape. I have plantar fasciitis and sometimes still have issues even with proper insoles and footwear if I've been walking too much. Tape up my foot for some extra support if needed and good to go. A pair of nail clippers. Towards the end of a cruise my nails may start breaking (the cruise ship water dries them out so bad) and trim them as soon as I see it start. Also use them to start the cut on the KT tape.

Check out the brand Hoka One One. They are podiatrist recommended, orthotic friendly, and almost every model shoe they sell comes in wide width (i think you have to buy ww online though). The Bondi's they sell with some good insoles/orthotics are heaven

One more thing, go see the maitre d' when you get on the ship. Your son will be able to order dinner for that night then, also will be able to pre-order for the next night at dinner each night.

I am gluten intolerant and not Celiac. I didn't get glutened during the trip, and am sensitive enough to know in 15 minutes. I was on the Equinox in April. No problems finding someone to let me know in the buffet what was gluten free, the staff was always happy to help. Dined in Blu for all but one night of the cruise (Murano for that one night) and had plenty of choices that were either gluten free or adapted to be. Desserts were tougher ( I am picky about desserts, my issue not Celebrity's) The gf muffins in Cafe Al Bacio were incredible, but I hadn't had any muffins in about 6 years. I wasn't fond of the gf bread with dinner, but it was raisin bread and I don't like raisins. I have to say though it wasn't dry like most gf bread So far Celebrity has been the best with accommodating gluten free diet for me (that's just comparing Carnival and NCL with them) I called customer service and also filled out the accommodation form 60 days out. Always a good idea to let them know in advance that way they can order the ingredients if necessary. The info about being gluten free was attached to my file, and the waiters knew from the outset. Although if they don't ask to verify it, inform them yourself. Always be proactive about it, it's not worth the pain to not be. Being proactive doesn't mean being difficult. That was hard for me to get used to, after having been raised to not make waves. Enjoy your cruise!

I use sea-bands for mild motion sickness saving the Dramamine for rough seas (or bad turbulence if flying). Ginger has never worked for me, but have heard green apples are another remedy

Yes, generic letter attached to an email

My cruise leaves on Saturday. I just got the letter this morning telling me I still need to complete ArriveCan and have a covid test