emandjennsmom

We did a tour with Bodden Tours in December. It was amazing. You can do a tour where you choose what you do. We went to the iguana farm, to see the monkeys, snorkeling and shopping. We also asked our driver, Marty, to show us some interesting things on the island. He did an EXCELLENT job giving us a tour. We learned a LOT about the island.

I would definitely tour again with Bodden Tours. I'm a worrier and was very concerned about not getting back to the ship, being with a stranger, feeling unsafe, etc. I worried for nothing.

I wouldn't do the iguana farm again, it was pretty tourist trappy, but the monkeys I would definitely do again. Request Marty. You won't be disappointed.

I'm wondering how close to sailing can you book a cruise. We are tossing around a last minute idea.

If you have any personal last minute booking experiences, please share. :)

The bags arrived. They seem to be of pretty good quality and the x-large one is huge. This was a great value. I saw a similar item at TJMaxx that was 29.99 for one that is the size of the smallest one in this set. I'm glad I ordered them and the teens are THRILLED with them.

We haven't tried the steamer yet, but one of our daughters has a formal this weekend, so she and her friends will be steaming away. ;)

I certainly didn't mean to upset anyone with my weather comments. It's just different for us northerners to see the nightmare that is taking place over what we would think is a small amount of snow, especially the well televised Atlanta mess. I feel awful for the people stuck in their vehicles and the kids stuck at school. It's all very sad. I can't imagine being stuck in my car or without my children.

I saw Al Roker go off on a little tangent today about the mayor of Atlanta and the governor of Georgia. He said the weather was well predicted and they failed at their responsibilities. It does indeed seem the blame game has begun.

We have driven through Atlanta a few times in the last year. The amount of traffic is remarkable. I can't fathom everyone on the roads at the same time. Atlanta has more lanes going in one direction on I-75 than we do (for the most part) going both north and south.

Again, I apologize if I upset anyone. It was just an observation and not intended to belittle anyone who is/was tragically stuck in their commute.

LOL.

It's always easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

I love, love, love my crossbody purse from Thirty-One gifts. It is virtually weightless. The soft wallet that coordinates with it is equally as light.

I think it's called the organizing shoulder bag. I have the quilted brown one. I believe that it is not in the spring catalog, but you can find it on Ebay. There are twill ones available that are very lightweight also. It's well worth the $45 purchase.

Being from Michigan, I am having a hard time wrapping my mind around the mess in Georgia from this very small amount of snow. Of course, most of the native southerners aren't used to the snow, so I guess that's the biggest root of the problem. It's just odd for us up here in the north to see a city, like Atlanta, shut down over 2.5 inches of snow and some ice.

Of course, those in Minnesota are probably making fun of us Michiganders with schools closed for 4 days thus far for cold weather. We've had windchills of -20 to -40 for several days. It's just brutally cold.

All of that being said, I'm glad your family is safe and warm! :)

Enjoy your cruise!

We forgot:

*camera charger in the van at the port.

*Prilosec. I ended up in a pharmacy (and I use that term loosely) in Cozumel buying over the counter omeprazole.

*corkscrew ($10 corking fee in the ship bars and dining rooms)

We were in a 4J on the Liberty in December. We did not experience any of the door slamming other than one day at the hands of crazy kids. The room was nice, but being on lido was nicer.

As for lounging out there, at least on the lido, there is only one bench to sit on, no chairs nor loungers. It is also very windy when sailing. It probably won't be where you'll wish to drink coffee while sailing. It is a great place to escape the chaos and find a quiet view though. :) We did have a very rough sea day and the doors were locked for safety concerns.

Keep your drapes closed, as those visiting the 'secret deck' can see in your windows. We were in our cabin waiting for the kids to get ready and a teenager planted his face against our window to see in. All he saw was us waiting, but well, you may not want to experience that or get caught changing clothes.

We really enjoyed the room location, but the room had one minor issue. We had a problem with a distinct sewage smell in the bathroom of 9202. We found that if we ran the shower and water went in the floor drains the odor dissipated significantly. We just turned the shower on for a couple of minutes if we were going to be in the room for a while.

If your room steward is Puspa, you will be very pleased. She is fantastic and very friendly. She will fill your wine bucket with ice daily, no need to even ask. We simply got a bucket from the bar (the beer buckets) and put a bottle of wine in it each morning. (We had non-drinkers travelling with us carry our extra wine aboard.) Every day she filled it and if we didn't take the wine to dinner, she replaced the ice at evening turn down and we took it to the comedy club. She always greeted us by name and the others in our parties, even though they weren't staying in her assigned cabins!

Enjoy your cruise! We are experiencing the same nasty weather here in Michigan. It's crazy. It's warmer in Anchorage than here right now. Feel free to ask if you have more questions about the room or the Liberty.

To thwart the packing problem, I plan to lay it flat in the bottom of the suitcase and tuck rolled pjs, socks, undies, etc. around the triangles. I'm hoping that works.

I ordered the little steamer, too. I ended up ordering two sets of the bags and the steamer this afternoon. I showed my husband what I had ordered when he got home from work and he told me to order one more set for me. I'm thinking about it.

Joy Magnano is on the HSN again tonight at 9 and 10 for anyone interested in the product.

http://www.hsn.com/products/joy-mangano-biggest-and-best-beauty-case-set-wbonuses/7277087

My teens are dying for me to buy them these in the navy chevron pattern. They would like to use them to organize there makeup and hair supplies. Any reviews?

Guerlain My Insolence

It's definitely my favorite, but hard to come by. Sephora and Macy's have both stopped stocking it. The last bottle was bought via Ebay. I hear the Guerlain shop in Epcot at WDW has it.

Guerlain Insolence is carried at most Guerlain counters, but the My Insolence is a completely different scent.

Here's a good tip I picked up a few years back. Turn all of your hangers in the closet around so they are on the bar from the backside. When you rehang the item, place the hanger the traditional way. At the end of one year, everything that is still hung that way, you have not worn and need to pass on to someone else.

It was amazing what was not worn at all. I did keep any formal unworn items.

I carried wine with us every night we went to the comedy club. I was charged a $10 corking fee, but they brought a bucket of ice and glasses every night. It was not an issue. I've also purchased the Tervis cup from Red Frog Rum Bar and put wine in it. No issues.

The only exception is if they are still in high school. They must have their high school id to show if they are 18.

Honestly, Carnival needs to host 2 meet & greets the first two days of sailing for the 18-20 year old crowd. It's a tough age for them to meet people that are their age and not in the clubs drinking. It's really an age group Carnival has chosen to ignore.

At the Alchemy Bar, try the 30 is the new 40 or something like that. It was delicious.

Comedy Club... Sex on the Stage. Excellent drink.

Standard bar drinks... Cruiser, Miami Vice, Twilight Zone

This drink is nasty... comedy club-Punchliner Ugh. it was nasty. It's ridiculously strong and I like strong drinks. It is the same drink as the Blue Iguana Long Island.

Sports Bar... Lynchburg lemonade

Looks like we found the same thing. I can't find Cozumel or Catalina either.

http://www.carnival.com/Activities/Excursion/424117

CONCERT SCHEDULE:

STYX: 4/7/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

STYX: 4/8/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Kansas: 4/15/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Kansas: 4/16/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Foreigner: 5/9/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Foreigner: 5/10/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Ecstasy

Olivia Newton-John: 6/27/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Olivia Newton-John: 6/28/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Ecstasy

38 Special: 9/6/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

38 Special: 9/7/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

Kansas: 9/23/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Kansas: 9/24/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

STYX: 9/29/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

STYX: 9/30/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Trace Adkins: 10/13/2014 Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Trace Adkins: 10/14/2014 Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Leann Rimes: 10/28/2014 Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Leann Rimes: 10/29/2014 Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

Kansas: 11/13/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

Kansas: 11/14/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

Trace Adkins: 11/24/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Trace Adkins: 11/25/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

Daughtry: 12/3/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Daughtry: 12/4/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

REO: 12/15/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fantasy

REO: 12/16/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Sensation

REO: 12/17/2014 in Nassau, The Bahamas on Carnival Fascination

Take one person from each room to the Guest Service Desk. Give them your keys and say, "Would you please make a room only entry key for each of these rooms?" They will do it. Now swap a key for each room and you can get into your room and the adults both have an entry key to your room. There is no need to explain to them who is sleeping where.

We do this when our girls are with us. The other benefit is for your parents, if one of them wishes to purchase the Cheers drink program, because since they are registered to separate rooms only one of the adults will need to buy it. :)

Here's my review:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1971830

I just posted a review of the Staybridge in Plantation here... http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1971830

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. BTW, the pizza place had a 40-50 minute wait on the Friday night we tried to get a table, so it must be good.

If you are driving to the Ft. Lauderdale port or Port of Miami, I highly recommend the Staybridge Suites in Plantation. It is 30 minutes from POM.

We had a two bedroom suite for $179 during Christmas week. It was fabulous. One bedroom had a king size bed and private bathroom. There was a living area with a full size refrigerator, dishwasher, two burner electric stove top and included pots/pans and dishes. The adjoining living area offered a television and queen size pull out sofa. the second bedroom had a queen size bed. There is a second bathroom off the living area.

Sunday night-Thursday night there is a free simple dinner in the courtyard. There is a free hot breakfast every day. Publix is an easy walk across the road, as well as a wood oven pizzeria, nail salon, yogurt eatery and other establishments. My mother, my teenage daughter and myself walked to Publix and to the nail salon after dark. We never felt unsafe. BTW, the nail salon was huge and they were very fast and affordable.

The hotel was clean, affordable, safe and convenient to the port if you are driving. It is hard to find a hotel for six, but aside from having enough space, it was a great place to stay. We wished we had more than one night to enjoy the on site fire pit and outdoor pool area.

Oops one more thing... they have free washers and dryers for guests. We took the time to wash everyone's travel clothes for the trip back home.

 

P.S. I LOVE my Sam Brown luggage I purchased on HSN. So much, that I bought my mom a set for Christmas for our April cruise. Then they had a carryon size bag I bought for 29.99 (I'll be using that for overnight trips).

 

I think I might be addicted to HSN.

Which Samantha Brown luggage do you have? I keep looking at it and can't decide.

Just a heads up...

Effective November 15, 2013 only vehicles with a lift or hand controls will be allowed to park for free at the Port of Miami. All other vehicles with handicapped plates/placards will be charged $20 a day.

I just thought I would post so those that have taken advantage of the free parking before can be prepared to pay.

Just a heads up...

Port of Miami is now charging $20 a day for handicapped parking. This was previously free. The change was effective November 15, 2013. if you have a lift or hand controls, your parking is still free. All other handicapped tags now pay a fee.

Just thought I'd give anyone who had previously parked here for free the heads up.