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

[techteach]

@jam19872016 Out of curiosity, when they cook your selection of items for the Mongolian Wok do they cook them on a flat top griddle or in a wok? True Mongolian grill is done a giant round gas fired flat top. There is a copious amount of liquid added to the items before being splayed on the griddle. Sauces, such as those listed, are not added during cooking. Very tasty!

[chryso]

If it is anything like on the Dream they have a dozen or so different woks and they use a new one for each order while the previously used ones are washed by a crew member right behind the cook.  This helps to prevent cross contamination from any allergens.

Edited November 3, 2023 by chryso

[jam19872016]

Took 35 minutes...everyone is staying on because of the weather I suppose. 

 

 

Being stingy with the cake slices too.

 

[jam19872016]

15 hours ago, Blackjackboss said:

Oh my

Yes and it got worse. Laying in bed I thought I was going to fall out. Once I fell asleep all was good.

 

14 hours ago, techteach said:

Dinner. Shakespeare “Get thee to a nunnery go!” - @jam19872016 Get thee to Cunard, Go! Eat real food. A TA is a wonderful thing to experience and much cheaper than 56 days around South America. But, rent a tux dude and let your mom strut her stuff in something beautiful! Stand in the atrium, level 2, and have a picture of the two of you taken to remember it for many years to come. Bless you for all of your wonderful posts.

Round trip TAs are definitely on my radar going forward. Trying to stick to Florida ports though where possible.

[jam19872016]

7 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

Sister line (the one w/the fabulous bacon in PG), currently on a roundtrip Rome, had a Halloween party, Halloween dance and Halloween trivia. I have no pictures & cannot report on attendance as I didn't go, but we all know it was nothing like you had. Plus it was indoors at club. The dessert and bakery stations had truly awesome food displays; caused a backup in the line from all the picture taking. 😉

The only picture I was able to get was ghosts 👻 floating around a staircase. 

Looks like your Halloween night was well celebrated!!

Probably more European crowd or folks traveling with luggage restrictions so not as much participation. But nice to hear the ship still put in an effort. I bet the food displays were beautiful. They did a great job with them here.

 

7 hours ago, exlondoner said:

Farfalle, excellent. We’ve yet another type of pasta. And I think it is the right shape.

I admit I did no research this time so I will trust your judgment and declare the farfalle a winner!

 

Nice to see they got it right for the captains Gala at least.

[jam19872016]

3 hours ago, five. said:

 

I was hoping that 80-90 minutes was an exaggeration. But a solid hour wait, wow. We have switched back to assigned dining. We just like it to be consistent timing and get to know the wait staff.

 

I have never had beef wellington, but I'll be getting it the next time I see it on the menu.

 

Fun. I've had that on HAL. Maybe it's always been on Carnival too, just don't recall it.

 

I haven't been since before covid, but that has always been my favorite class of ships. Like the spa hydrotherapy pool and deck five for walking and hot tubs. I have heard negative reports though, so it makes me sad. I'll try it again at some point.

 

Definitely a place I want to visit. Never been there and it's on the short list of places to go. At one point there was a cruise once a year from Charleston that went to Bermuda and I should have made a point of doing that one, but never did.

I'm ok with the wait time. I know about it ahead of time and can adjust. I was not ready but seeing the wait I could put in a request and have it ready when I was. Wait times are also higher on these long cruises because more people eat early. It's rare to have a wait on a normal cruise except elegant nights and peak dining times.

 

Beats the way Royal does it. YTD starts at 645 and there is no virtual line. Just a real one that winds forever because everyone is waiting by 645. Reservations ahead of time book up on the first night and are typically only for 730 and later and defeats the purpose of flexible dining to me. Truly terrible system imo.

 

I love that Carnival offers a choice for people who prefer fixed or flexible. Royal basically forces you into fixed and NCL into flexible. MSC charges more for flexible dining.

 

I've found the beef wellington to be soggy many times but this was a very nice version and the beef was so tender and flavorful. 

 

Baked Alaska is usually on the last night menu although with the new menus rolling out I'm not sure what night it is but I feel like I've seen it on there still. 

 

Dream class is my favorite class of ship too. It was the last class before they started getting too crowded but recent enough to have some of the more modern updates. If they ever added a jiji's to a dream class ship, it would be the perfect class of ship for me. I'm really hoping the negative reviews are being blown out of proportion, we'll see 😬. 

 

I'm very glad I finally did Bermuda. It's been on my list for a while but they just recently started traveling there semi regularly from Florida. The better itineraries there are still from the more northerly states with overnight stops there. 

[jam19872016]

3 hours ago, exlondoner said:

What does your mother do with all her purchases when she gets home. Distribute them among friends and relatives or display them or what?

Most of the souvenirs she gives away. The ducks are getting out of hand 😆. 

 

2 hours ago, techteach said:

I think it would be interesting to see them all lined up. She must have quite a collection at this point .

She has a large display of them. She is out of room at this point and I don't know what she plans to do with the 80+ ducks we've gotten on this trip. 

[jam19872016]

1 hour ago, techteach said:

@jam19872016 Out of curiosity, when they cook your selection of items for the Mongolian Wok do they cook them on a flat top griddle or in a wok? True Mongolian grill is done a giant round gas fired flat top. There is a copious amount of liquid added to the items before being splayed on the griddle. Sauces, such as those listed, are not added during cooking. Very tasty!

They use a Wok. There are some liquids placed into the wok before the cooking starts.

 

They add your bowl of veggies and noodles that you picked out. Then they add your choice of meat, which they portion but you can ask for more if you like. 

 

Sauces are added towards the end of the cooking if I'm not mistaken and not as part of the liquids at the start of the cooking, but I'm not positive but I do see scoops of liquids at the start and different scoops of liquids at the end.

 

It is very good. Hot and fresh off the wok when you receive it. I choose szcheuan sauce and it is SPICY. One of the few truly spicu things onboard. 

1 hour ago, chryso said:

If it is anything like on the Dream they have a dozen or so different woks and they use a new one for each order while the previously used ones are washed by a crew member right behind the cook.  This helps to prevent cross contamination from any allergens.

That is exactly how it is done here.

[jam19872016]

Today's activities 

 

 

 

 

 

[jam19872016]

[jam19872016]

3 hours ago, exlondoner said:

What does your mother do with all her purchases when she gets home. Distribute them among friends and relatives or display them or what?

Don't worry, she got you something too. Found this cute bag with your name all over it.

 

[exlondoner]

8 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

Don't worry, she got you something too. Found this cute bag with your name all over it.

 

So kind, but I wouldn’t pay §39. 

[jam19872016]

3 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

So kind, but I wouldn’t pay §39. 

Everything in Bermuda is expensive. She found a few bargains but it took some hunting.

[jam19872016]

Its so chilly I could almost go for a hot coffee instead. 

 

[NE John]

24 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

Everything in Bermuda is expensive. She found a few bargains but it took some hunting.

@jam19872016, it’s quite awesome how you respond to all our (peanut gallery) comments and questions. Every. Single. One. 

[jam19872016]

1 minute ago, NE John said:

@jam19872016, it’s quite awesome how you respond to all our (peanut gallery) comments and questions. Every. Single. One. 

That's the beauty of a live vs. post cruise review, the interaction and banter 😀. 

 

I really appreciate the comments and questions makes me feel like someone is interested. I did a live last year on Royal that lasted about a month and only generated 20 pages of content. Felt like I was just talking to myself most the time 🤣 

[techteach]

@jam19872016 I have had a blast following you on your journey and interacting with all of those posting. (I am getting a ribbing from my DH regarding the number of hours spent with coffee in my chair in the morning). I hope you will post something on the Cunard forum the next time you’re on board one of the Queens, even if it links back to another line. I bet if you started a Go Fund Me page many of us would contribute to buying, or renting, a tux for your next Cunard voyage because we really do want you to experience the special gala evenings. Hugs from Seattle.

[exlondoner]

7 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

 Felt like I was just talking to myself most the time 🤣 

That’s the way to have an intelligent conversation. 😃

[jam19872016]

1 minute ago, techteach said:

@jam19872016 I have had a blast following you on your journey and interacting with all of those posting. (I am getting a ribbing from my DH regarding the number of hours spent with coffee in my chair in the morning). I hope you will post something on the Cunard forum the next time you’re on board one of the Queens, even if it links back to another line. I bet if you started a Go Fund Me page many of us would contribute to buying, or renting, a tux for your next Cunard voyage because we really do want you to experience the special gala evenings. Hugs from Seattle.

The thought of wearing a tux sounds terrible but it looks like I might have no choice 😅.

 

I'll be sure to pop in if/when I make it on Cunard again. 

[chryso]

Just now, jam19872016 said:

The thought of wearing a tux sounds terrible but it looks like I might have no choice 😅.

I live in south Louisiana and probably wear shorts 300 days a year.  I got a tux for my recent QE trip and it was really no worse than just wearing long pants.  The only real difference was that I looked fantastic (make that MORE fantastic) and I was a little more careful with my food. (I probably needed to be more careful anyway)

[jam19872016]

7 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

That’s the way to have an intelligent conversation. 😃

Yes but I had no help remembering to check the salt and pepper and I have no idea if the pasta I ate was correctly labeled.

 

I was so naive then.

 

1 minute ago, chryso said:

I live in south Louisiana and probably wear shorts 300 days a year.  I got a tux for my recent QE trip and it was really no worse than just wearing long pants.  The only real difference was that I looked fantastic (make that MORE fantastic) and I was a little more careful with my food. (I probably needed to be more careful anyway)

It would take a cloak of invisibility to make me look fantastic 😆 

 

I know my mom would love a picture though.

[exlondoner]

2 minutes ago, chryso said:

I live in south Louisiana and probably wear shorts 300 days a year.  I got a tux for my recent QE trip and it was really no worse than just wearing long pants.  The only real difference was that I looked fantastic (make that MORE fantastic) and I was a little more careful with my food. (I probably needed to be more careful anyway)

I’m not sure there is anything in the rubric that actually forbids the wearing of shorts with a tux, but I haven’t got the full version of ‘what to pack’ in front of me. But absurdity might preclude it.

[chryso]

4 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I’m not sure there is anything in the rubric that actually forbids the wearing of shorts with a tux, but I haven’t got the full version of ‘what to pack’ in front of me. But absurdity might preclude it.

I am sure a Scot could recommend a kilted tux.  Not a lot of difference from my point of view.

[jam19872016]

Just now, chryso said:

I am sure a Scot could recommend a kilted tux.  Not a lot of difference from my point of view.

My heritage is Scottish but I certainly couldn't pull off a kilt.

 

Maybe a tshirt tuxedo?

[chryso]

5 minutes ago, jam19872016 said:

My heritage is Scottish but I certainly couldn't pull off a kilt.

 

Maybe a tshirt tuxedo?

Surely you wear long pants and a jacket when it gets cold.  This is really no different.