Smilefy

The Curves near me closed, and I miss it terribly. If you put a lot of effort into those machines, you get a great workout. Sometimes you can get in on a good conversation while working out; if not, I would put in my ear buds and listen to a podcast or something. I highly recommend Curves.

I feel like I get a much better workout here, even without having a personal trainer (I've had great trainers and I've had bad trainers). My muscles ache after and I work up a sweat and huff, but not so much that I feel like I can't go back the next day. This has kept me going. When the circuit becomes too easy, I will try the Jillian Michaels class.

I have only seen pictures of a big round pool with people sitting in it and a large obstruction in the middle (like a hot tub). On the voyager the pool was rectangular and deep with no obstructions.

Look at the amenities and activities in advance to get ideas of what you want to do. Fill your schedule with free activities. If you are bored, you will wander into the shops, play bingo, buy drinks, and spend on other things to kill time.

Is it an actual pool or just a big hot tub?

The best cruise ship pool I have been on was with Voyager and I'm having similar if not better expectations.

I will echo this sentiment. Tabayana Beach was a trip of a lifetime. I've been there twice, but the first time I did not snorkel. The second time we snorkeled there I was hooked. Did not want to leave and even looked into booking a resort in the area.

if you want to snorkel from shore in Roatan, try Tabayana Beach- we loved it.

What is the train like? Is there a reasonable option. We are from Canada & I've been wondering if that might be a nicer way to get to ports than the endurance marathon also known as flying.

 

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Amtrak is only reasonably priced if you are not passing through any time zones. It is a ridiculously outdated pricing scheme, but it is what it is. Expect to pay more than a flight, but expect to spend less time traveling than driving yourself.

That's the one! She has great ideas and they are not overly complicated (usually).

CnKinChatt - I'm counting on it. LoL!

I agree with what everyone is saying about the time of year. Went a few years back January on the carnival magic and hit rough waters. All I can say is buckets, buckets everywhere.

The smaller the ship, the easier it is to socialize. My first cruise is still one of my favorites onboard the carnival ecstasy. There are many ships smaller than this one though.

Try looking into one of the windjammer experiences.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/reviews/cruiseline.cfm?CruiseLineID=136

Does anyone know how they remove the shellac? Is it soaking (remover wet cotton covered with foil) or is scrapping? A nail salon I went to ONCE insisted on scrapping it off and really ruined my nails.

 

Also, is it pretty standard that they charge to remove it even if you are paying for a new shellac manicure? Seems pretty expensive to charge for both in one manicure.

 

Thanks for an info. If it helps, I will be on HAL, Ryndam.

 

Thanks again!

K

Remove by soaking in acetone. You may have to sit there fore awhile and your nails will be weak just after, but minimal scraping will be needed.

Do you get your nails done before boarding or onboard the ship at the spa? Or both!

I usually get my nails done beforehand as it is considerably cheaper, but one year after swimming in salt water my manicure turned my nails grey. It was a strange experience. So we booked an appointment at the spa salon aboard the ship and I got the generic-branded shellac done and it looked great. The girl said it would last for a week, but it was more like three.

I have several Kipling bags for holidays, some larger than others. They are super lightweight, have strong, easy pull zips. They are water-resistant and wipeable, but if you do buy a light coloured one you can throw them in the washing machine if necessary. I have bought mine from Amazon in the past-they might not be the newest colours, but the styles are super. Highly recommend!

 

 

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I love Kipling. I think I have bags for my bags. I blame my grandmother for making me a bag lady, she always was giving me hand me down bags she had purchased. ;)

My purse is a Kipling cross-body bag that can fit a kindle and a guidebook and all documents when needed. Love that.

Second favorite would be my brother's Eagle Creek packable backpack. He took it on a trip to Europe as a backup and never needed it. Now it's mine :) It has padded shoulder straps, yet fits itself into a tiny pouch.

slidegirl - thanks! I don't know why I didn't think of Sephora.

Hoyaheel - cool website, and reasonably priced!

I use the packing cubes/bags to store out of season items when I am not traveling. It is definitely worthwhile to invest in a nice set such as the eagle creek spectre series. The sturdier versions do better protect your items from getting squished in your bag, but weigh more.

Plastic gallon size bags are big enough to put a day by day outfit in each bag and you have a place to label the date.

I used to buy outdated items from thrift stores like the salvation army for $3 and under and alter them to modern styles. I never used a pattern, just traced over clothing items I already owned and liked. (starch them like crazy before hand). It was way cheaper than buying fabric, patterns, etc. Now my closet is full and I will have to wait again to do this. There was a blogger who did this once a week with lots of inspirational ideas. I have forgotten the name of it though.

A serger is one thing I am missing, thankfully older clothes are mostly woven and not knit.

Where can you even find these for shampoos and the like nowadays? They used to show up in magazines and in the mail on occasion, but it seems like it has been years since I have seen any of these sample sized packets.

The little foil packets come in two materials - plastic that looks like foil and ones that are actually foil. I don't carry the latter anymore. I was inspected twice just for the packets.

Definitely packing cubes. If you have a weight restriction on your bag, try the lightweight versions, because they can add to the overall weight.

Where I live it is very hot and humid, I don't sweat much and overheat easily, so I never wear an antiperspirant. It also doesn't make sense for me to block the thing that is allowing toxins to leave my body. With that being said, I don't like the idea of walking around with a noticeable odor. So deodorant it is.

I don't know if we are able to post links here or not, but there is an article on webmd about the safety of antiperspirants that is worth reading if it is something you fear.

And do any of these deodorants mentioned (aside from the dove) come in a small travel size?

Unfortunately it is the closest one.

I have a rapid heart rate condition that can make exercise feel like torture. Yesterday, there was another woman in the circuit with the same condition and she kept encouraging me. In my mind I was like, if I can get trough this thing 1 and 1/2 times, I can do it 2 times for sure. After doing the circuit I was definitely winded, but I felt great and I feel great today too!

In contrast, I was once a member at another gym, not a curves, where a trainer told me I couldn't keep up with her cardio routine because I'm lazy. She then tried to sell me a bunch of vitamin supplements. I tried out her routine, but my heart was beating so fast I couldn't get through 5 minutes of it. My face was beet red for 15 minutes after my five minute exercise and I developed a blood blister on the bottom of my foot. It hasn't happened before then and hasn't happened since.

I am starting to believe Curves is something I can really stick with long term. Now if I can just make it in on time next week for three days in a row.

In the past I have used those 8 mL. plastic atomizer spray bottles which are great for packing small quantities of stuff I don't use a lot of. You could probably fit 20 of them in a quart size bag. They are hard to find though.

When I was younger I got away with traveling with gallon sized bags and the TSA let it go. They just shrugged and said nothing. I think it was several years of traveling before I did figure out the rules.

It is always tempting to spend money on those travel kits because they are so convenient, but look around your bathroom to find things you can re-use before going out and buying any of that stuff. I had forgotten that I owned several mini perfumes, I had some small shampoo bottles from hotels that I emptied and put my (better) shampoo in. If you must break down and buy a kit, the dollar tree has them for a dollar. You can wrap the tops with saran wrap to prevent leaking if the quality concerns you, but I didn't have that problem.

I like the idea of old contact lens cases someone mentioned also some pill containers work too. On a tangent, pill containers are a great way to organize jewelry without worrying about tangles, as are glade press n seal sheets. They take little or no space in your bag.

I'm challenging myself to go on our next trip (11 days) with only a personal sized item. Carryon items and checked bags are an extra charge with the airline I am flying on. This may prove difficult if I can't find a way to include my snorkel gear. I've considered strapping it to the outside with one of those luggage belts. (Another tangent) The quart sized bag is hardly sufficient in a normal world, but with some packing origami, it can work.

I am definitely a victim of the fashion police. Just wore my gym clothes to the store today in fact.

However, when I am on a cruise I somehow find it important to plan out each and every thing I am going to wear and how I'm going to do my hair.

For me, the most egregious of fashion crimes is the one that is most common to spot. The lady or gent is dressed to the nines, or perhaps a carefully planned out outfit on cruise casual night, but that's not the first thing I notice, in fact I don't notice his or her outfit at all. I see a mean muggin stare in one direction or the other or perhaps an envious glare. It could be a grimace. I don't know for sure. I just think it is the worst to ruin a great outfit by being a grump.

I have been wondering the same thing. Our flight is at 6. I know from others posting about spirit airlines, you will want to check in at least an hour before because if you are even a minute under that, they will charge you. That hasn't been a problem for me, but I'm always early to the airport, then nothing to do. I don't want to spend an entire 10 hours waiting though.

They want me to spend a month before starting the curves smart system. I wish they had better hours though, this week I haven't gotten off work in time to make it in. I'm dedicated to going in for the next three days. I haven't heard anything about a curves smart challenge.

I've used the machines for 3 workouts now. I did two workouts last week and I worked out yesterday. Today was the day that I could tell that I've increased my current exercise schedule. During Zumba...OMG...

 

My center wants me to use the machines for 3-4 workouts before doing the appt that will get me on the Curves Smart system. Is your center the same?

 

I'll do the circuit again tomorrow. I'm so very excited to get on the system and use the card to have a target for my workout. I'm doing that appt on Friday!

 

Then I'm going to start using the circuit 3X weekly.

 

Did you sign up for the 90-day #curvessmart challenge?

When nothing new strikes my eye I do a google search for 100 American Classics, 100 British Classics or something similar and pick from those lists. Also many of these titles are free on kindle devices, which for me is a bonus.

I have always enjoyed the dystopian teen novels and can read some of them in under 3 hours, so there is a bit of instant gratification in getting through the whole story in one setting.