Live From The Carnival Freedom: Crossing the Atlantic for a New Whale Tail

[jam19872016]

2 hours ago, rizkeeper said:

about 1/2 through this thread, thanks for doing it....how many seas days are there when crossing the Atlantic?  How was the weather? How are the Seas?  

There were 8 in total but they were split. Two days to Bermuda, four days to Azores, and two days to mainland Europe. The weather was warm but not hot until we made the turn north towards the Azores. Then they did cool slightly but only just slightly.

 

The seas were very calm for the crossing however many people I talked to who had done crossings before said this was the smoothest crossing they had ever experienced. Everything I've read on it suggests it can easily go either way. I think the later in the year you go, the more likely you are to experience a rough crossing.

2 hours ago, rizkeeper said:

also what is your height and age range?  we seem to have the same weight fights.  You are correct, for me its 100% about diet vs activity.  I dropped from 355 to 335 in two months changing diet (a little) and walk/running daily...but for the last 5 months I've bounce from 330 - 337 weekly.  I'll need to significantly change my diet to break the 330 level (i'm 6'1" in mid 40s).  I have 45 days until my cruise, was hoping to be under 220, but this 5 month stall in weight loss has been a killer.  I've been lifting weights too during this time, so some of the weight may be fat to muscle...  

I'm 5'11 and at my heaviest I was 306. I got down to 198.8 before the trip but I have put it back on very quickly and was back to 224.4 this morning. 

 

I used an app called myfitnesspal to track my calories. You would be amazed how quickly you consume your daily allowed calories. You would also be surprised at items you thought were low in calories that are actually terrible. The logging also helps with accountability so that you don't go over, either on accident or on purpose.

 

Ignore all the other line items. Fat, Sugar, Carbs, none of it matters for weight loss. They are important for other health reasons but for weight loss they mean nothing. Calories, calories, calories, and that's it. I was able to eat anything I wanted by not worrying about those other metrics so long as I kept my calories in check. It makes it easier when you are not depriving yourself of something you want, but rather enjoying it in moderation.

 

I also started doing intermittent fasting. There are different methods but the one that I used is the 16/8 method. This is where you eat during an 8 hour window, and then fast for the next 16. Remember you are sleeping for 8 of those so it is not as difficult as it sounds. Also pickles are zero calories and can be eaten if you have to put something in your stomach during your fast. Water is of course zero calories and some energy drinks are as well. This helped me once counting calories alone was not working.

 

Eventually you reach a point where your metabolism adjusts and whatever you are doing is not as effective. I am at that point and I am not sure where to go from here other than taking it one day at a time and sticking to long term goals without worrying to much about daily challenges.

 

When you are too hard on yourself, the desire to give up kicks in. Keep working at it, it is not easy I wish I could say it was. The reward will be worth it in the end. Good luck.

[Essiesmom]

3 hours ago, rizkeeper said:

also what is your height and age range?  we seem to have the same weight fights.  You are correct, for me its 100% about diet vs activity.  I dropped from 355 to 335 in two months changing diet (a little) and walk/running daily...but for the last 5 months I've bounce from 330 - 337 weekly.  I'll need to significantly change my diet to break the 330 level (i'm 6'1" in mid 40s).  I have 45 days until my cruise, was hoping to be under 220, but this 5 month stall in weight loss has been a killer.  I've been lifting weights too during this time, so some of the weight may be fat to muscle...  

He states age in post #4.  EM

[jam19872016]

3 hours ago, balcony bound said:

Maybe you can pick a day to get transportation and get "out" - find something you want to see or do and take Mom out for the day.

 

1 hour ago, SenatorsFan said:

If you wanted to do the HOHO bus tour in town, we did both loops in April and were amazed at all the sights we saw! 

I think I've found an option to get me into town without breaking the budget. My mom needs a more central location, her shots she took to help with her pain are not working and she is only good for short trips, so unfortunately she is still going to be stuck at the hotel.

[jam19872016]

2 hours ago, rhiannon84 said:

If it looks difficult and expensive to get into Barcelona you could ask the hotel reception about options for Sitges? It's a smaller seaside town which locals from Barcelona go to - about 25mins drive from the airport, so closer than getting into central Barcelona 

When it was just me going, I was going to stay in Sitges because the prices were far better than Barcelona. I figured I would move closer to town since I knew my mom could not handle that much travel. Now I'm thinking I should have to save the money since we are still to far for her to sightsee.

[ninjacat123]

38 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

There were 8 in total but they were split. Two days to Bermuda, four days to Azores, and two days to mainland Europe. The weather was warm but not hot until we made the turn north towards the Azores. Then they did cool slightly but only just slightly.

 

The seas were very calm for the crossing however many people I talked to who had done crossings before said this was the smoothest crossing they had ever experienced. Everything I've read on it suggests it can easily go either way. I think the later in the year you go, the more likely you are to experience a rough crossing.

I'm 5'11 and at my heaviest I was 306. I got down to 198.8 before the trip but I have put it back on very quickly and was back to 224.4 this morning. 

 

I used an app called myfitnesspal to track my calories. You would be amazed how quickly you consume your daily allowed calories. You would also be surprised at items you thought were low in calories that are actually terrible. The logging also helps with accountability so that you don't go over, either on accident or on purpose.

 

Ignore all the other line items. Fat, Sugar, Carbs, none of it matters for weight loss. They are important for other health reasons but for weight loss they mean nothing. Calories, calories, calories, and that's it. I was able to eat anything I wanted by not worrying about those other metrics so long as I kept my calories in check. It makes it easier when you are not depriving yourself of something you want, but rather enjoying it in moderation.

 

I also started doing intermittent fasting. There are different methods but the one that I used is the 16/8 method. This is where you eat during an 8 hour window, and then fast for the next 16. Remember you are sleeping for 8 of those so it is not as difficult as it sounds. Also pickles are zero calories and can be eaten if you have to put something in your stomach during your fast. Water is of course zero calories and some energy drinks are as well. This helped me once counting calories alone was not working.

 

Eventually you reach a point where your metabolism adjusts and whatever you are doing is not as effective. I am at that point and I am not sure where to go from here other than taking it one day at a time and sticking to long term goals without worrying to much about daily challenges.

 

When you are too hard on yourself, the desire to give up kicks in. Keep working at it, it is not easy I wish I could say it was. The reward will be worth it in the end. Good luck.

Many great tips!!  Another way to be accountable is to take a pic of what you're consuming, even water.  People over estimate how much water they consume and this keeps the tally accurate.👍

[jam19872016]

Today was a relaxing day. After our morning excursion to the grocery store we relaxed in the room. 

 

My "local" snack.

 

 

We both enjoyed a siesta per local custom.

 

I got my day tomorrow planned out. We'll sorta, I don't have specific plans but I do have a 72 hour transit pass and 3 day gocity pass as well as a basic understanding of the transit system and my local metro station.

 

Going to try and get some sleep now so I can hit the ground running tomorrow. 

[Petersonfcu]

7 hours ago, jam19872016 said:

 

I'm 5'11 and at my heaviest I was 306. I got down to 198.8 before the trip but I have put it back on very quickly and was back to 224.4 this morning. 

 

I used an app called myfitnesspal to track my calories. You would be amazed how quickly you consume your daily allowed calories. You would also be surprised at items you thought were low in calories that are actually terrible. The logging also helps with accountability so that you don't go over, either on accident or on purpose.

 

Ignore all the other line items. Fat, Sugar, Carbs, none of it matters for weight loss. They are important for other health reasons but for weight loss they mean nothing. Calories, calories, calories, and that's it. I was able to eat anything I wanted by not worrying about those other metrics so long as I kept my calories in check. It makes it easier when you are not depriving yourself of something you want, but rather enjoying it in moderation.

 

I also started doing intermittent fasting. There are different methods but the one that I used is the 16/8 method. This is where you eat during an 8 hour window, and then fast for the next 16. Remember you are sleeping for 8 of those so it is not as difficult as it sounds. Also pickles are zero calories and can be eaten if you have to put something in your stomach during your fast. Water is of course zero calories and some energy drinks are as well. This helped me once counting calories alone was not working.

 

Eventually you reach a point where your metabolism adjusts and whatever you are doing is not as effective. I am at that point and I am not sure where to go from here other than taking it one day at a time and sticking to long term goals without worrying to much about daily challenges.

 

When you are too hard on yourself, the desire to give up kicks in. Keep working at it, it is not easy I wish I could say it was. The reward will be worth it in the end. Good luck.

Been there, done that.  Now, I have one word for you.  Wegovy.  Well, two words.  Wegovy and Mounjaro.  The latter is the only thing that has worked for me.   And it is currently working like a charm!

Edited October 6, 2023 by Petersonfcu

[jam19872016]

Heading out now!

[wrightkj]

1 hour ago, jam19872016 said:

Heading out now!

I am enjoying reading about your travels so much, and I can't wait to hear what you find on today's adventure!

[jam19872016]

8 hours ago, wrightkj said:

I am enjoying reading about your travels so much, and I can't wait to hear what you find on today's adventure!

I'm afraid I don't have anything too exciting to report on today. Thanks for reading along 🙂

 

[jam19872016]

Today was a bust.

 

I purchased the holabarcelona pass which included unlimited rides on public transportation throughout zone 1 in Barcelona. You can purchase passes ranging from 48 hours, to 120 hours. I purchased 72 hours for $25.10.

 

The T10 can be purchased for €7.85 and while its only good for 10 rides I could have bought three passes for the same cost. If I do at least 20 I'll break even I guess. The big reason this is cheaper is because the hola pass comes with a transfer from or to the airport, which I didn't really need. The T10 is not valid from the airport. I think I understand it correctly, I'll admit the fare structure is a little complicated to follow.

 

Adding slightly to the confusion is the website says tickets will be delivered to your email. That is not exactly accurate, instead a code is delivered to your email. You need to use that code at the kiosk to print your ticket. This was not indicated anywhere I could find until I made my purchase and no instructions on where to find a kiosk was included. The hotel desk was able to point me in the right direction. It turned out to be located where my first stop was today anyway, but if I had wanted to use the bus first instead of the Metro, I would have needed to go print a ticket and then come back. Not really as described as far as ticket being delivered to your email.

 

I also purchased the three day unlimited pass from GoCity for €166.

 

This is where things went wrong and it is totally on me.

 

Barcelona is not Bermuda. It is not Ponta Delgada. It is not a turn up without a plan of action kind of city. It was quite clear that the more popular attractions would require a reservation so I intended to just go to the less popular attractions that maybe didn't need a reservation. They were all slammed with tourists and lines to get in that stretched for blocks.

 

If that wasn't bad enough, my offline maps were useless for navigating public transportation. I would have liked to have used it to move around a little better from place to place but my maps were only showing me how to drive to my location. Having not familiarized myself wit the transit system I didn't really know how to get around and I wanted to be careful not to get so far away as not to be able to figure out a way back.

 

I knew where I came out at to plug back into google and used that as a reference to get back on the metro, I knew my way back for the most part from there. I figured out how to read the maps well enough to continue exploring a little more before I started getting too tired to continue exploring and made my way to the nearest metro to make my way back to my home base.

[jam19872016]

So in the end I have decided to request a refund on the go city pass. It comes with a 90 day money back guarantee if you don't use it. I have not heard back from them yet. It was all a little too overwhelming but I am happy with the transit pass I bought. I will use it to explore the city on foot a little more and I also used it to make another supermarket run this evening. 

 

I took a few pictures today but not a lot as I was truly overwhelmed by my surroundings and worried about my battery dieing before I could find my way back (which turned out to be fine I had plenty of juice left).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pe4all]

I give you soooo much credit for attempting to venture out on your own in a strange city.  We did the hoho bus in Barcelona, as I was too nervous to try their transit system.  Hopefully you will get a rapid refund for the city pass you purchased.

[jam19872016]

4 minutes ago, pe4all said:

I give you soooo much credit for attempting to venture out on your own in a strange city.  We did the hoho bus in Barcelona, as I was too nervous to try their transit system.  Hopefully you will get a rapid refund for the city pass you purchased.

I found the hoho bus but even that had a line to board that went on forever so I moved on. Thankful I did since if I had activated my pass no refund would be given.

 

 

[Gumbo4Life]

Hey there cruiser!  Continuing to enjoy your adventures!  We are on our trip heading (long way) to Rome to catch the Pride on Oct 28, currently in France.  We spent a day in Barcelona before heading out and ended up walking about 9 miles as the boss doesn’t do underground (metro) even though it was a straight shot back to the hotel and I wasn’t able to flag a cab.  Based on your description she was probably right, and we needed the exercise!  We bought tickets to the Sagrada Famila in advance and got in.  Waaay too many people but did enjoy the visit.  We have bought tickets for only a few other sites for the next few weeks but not trying to do too much as we want some flexibility. Enjoy your time in Barcelona!  

[fla33023]

What's the building in the 3rd picture you posted? It looks like barbed wire is all over the top? 

[grandmacani]

We will be in Barcelona 4 days prior to boarding. Our first stop, leaving Wednesday, Paris to stay with friends. It was supposed to be just hubby and myself but daughters will be coming too. Got an Airbnb for 5 days in Barcelona, one of the girls can help reading Spanish. They will stand on land and wave us bon voyage, they will fly back to Michigan. Tried to convince their hubbys to let them do the TA with us but… This is our 4th TA and we only had one rough night. Hoping for the same. Safe travels

[Petersonfcu]

3 hours ago, grandmacani said:

This is our 4th TA and we only had one rough night. Hoping for the same. Safe travels

Like you, we have done many TAs.  And we have not even had one rough day (or night).  I have a theory that on the TA the cruise line builds in a bit of extra time, and the Captain can then suss out the weather ahead and deviate to the south or north if desired.  Developed this theory by noting that the cruise ship doesn't seem to travel in a straight path across the ocean.  It seems instead to zig or zag a bit.

[jam19872016]

18 hours ago, Gumbo4Life said:

Hey there cruiser!  Continuing to enjoy your adventures!  We are on our trip heading (long way) to Rome to catch the Pride on Oct 28, currently in France.  We spent a day in Barcelona before heading out and ended up walking about 9 miles as the boss doesn’t do underground (metro) even though it was a straight shot back to the hotel and I wasn’t able to flag a cab.  Based on your description she was probably right, and we needed the exercise!  We bought tickets to the Sagrada Famila in advance and got in.  Waaay too many people but did enjoy the visit.  We have bought tickets for only a few other sites for the next few weeks but not trying to do too much as we want some flexibility. Enjoy your time in Barcelona!  

The metro has been wonderful especially as I learn how to navigate it better. I'm a fan of flexibility but that hasn't worked well in Barcelona. Need to make and stick to a rigid schedule if you want to see anything touristy. 

 

You're going to see a lot of familiar faces on the Pride. I think there are more doing that back than Freedom. Enjoy your time in Europe and your return crossing on the Pride!

[jam19872016]

15 hours ago, fla33023 said:

What's the building in the 3rd picture you posted? It looks like barbed wire is all over the top? 

I'm not really sure. I photographed it because it looked interesting. Artsy. But it just sort of blends in with the clouds in the photo so its hard to tell. It very well could be barbed wire but at the time it looks like a design. Not so sure now 🙂 

[jam19872016]

15 hours ago, grandmacani said:

We will be in Barcelona 4 days prior to boarding. Our first stop, leaving Wednesday, Paris to stay with friends. It was supposed to be just hubby and myself but daughters will be coming too. Got an Airbnb for 5 days in Barcelona, one of the girls can help reading Spanish. They will stand on land and wave us bon voyage, they will fly back to Michigan. Tried to convince their hubbys to let them do the TA with us but… This is our 4th TA and we only had one rough night. Hoping for the same. Safe travels

11 hours ago, Petersonfcu said:

Like you, we have done many TAs.  And we have not even had one rough day (or night).  I have a theory that on the TA the cruise line builds in a bit of extra time, and the Captain can then suss out the weather ahead and deviate to the south or north if desired.  Developed this theory by noting that the cruise ship doesn't seem to travel in a straight path across the ocean.  It seems instead to zig or zag a bit.

Fingers crossed for another smooth sailing. 

[jam19872016]

Today's outing took me to a quieter area of Barcelona.

 

 

I came across a local dance school performing in the street.

 

 

There was a carnival taking place with some rides.

 

 

 

I also stopped in a grocery store just to take a look around. And use the wifi. 

 

Finally I came to a park.

 

 

 

I'd been walking for over four hours by this point, so I didn't get to explore it as I was running out of steam and still has a long train ride back to the hotel. I may try to come back here tomorrow. I also want to see the mall. Other than that I will probably just get off at each stop and look around tomorrow.

 

It was certainly not the most exciting day but I enjoyed it. I took in the sights at my leisure and stumbled upon a wonderful performance that I watched for about 20 minutes. I'm learning how to navigate the metro which allows me to wander a little more confidently away from the station since I can find my way back from a different line than I left off on.

 

I am still waiting on a refund. When I try to click on the link I followed before, it says access restricted. In fact, any link on the website I try to click gives me that message. Except when I click "buy pass". Go figure.

 

I have sent an email to them since they are not responding to my form I filled out, and I can no longer even access the form. It is a legitimate service so I am not sure what is going on but I am not happy with the slow response so far.

[arizdback]

16 hours ago, fla33023 said:

What's the building in the 3rd picture you posted? It looks like barbed wire is all over the top? 

That is the Fundacio Antoni Tapies. The barbed wire is supposed to represent clouds. It is an art museum

Edited October 7, 2023 by arizdback

[jam19872016]

3 minutes ago, arizdback said:

That is the Fundacio Antoni Tapies. The barbed wire is supposed to represent clouds. It is an art museum

 

Thanks! So it was both artsy and barbed wire, and it was meant to blend in with the clouds. Interesting. 

[fla33023]

2 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

 

Thanks! So it was both artsy and barbed wire, and it was meant to blend in with the clouds. Interesting. 

Yeah, that's really cool because you totally got the whole "cloud" aspect.  I love seeing all of the pictures you post of every day life. I like just sitting and watching the locals.