Just returned 10/7/2007 FREEDOM SAILING!!

[cot427]

Hey everyone. It has been a while, about 10 days since I've been on. I just returned with my group of 12 from the 10/7/2007 Freedom of the Seas sailing. I will write my review hopefully Monday or Tuesday. Til then, I just wanted to keep it short.

 

The weather was great except for days 2 and 7. Rainy and overcast those days.

 

Entertainment was so so so so great. It was fantastic. Richard Spacey was by far the best cruise director I have every had on any ship. He was so funny, a great CD.

 

My family won 400 dollars in bingo, we played 4 sessions with the bingo dingo "leigh".

 

The ship was fantastic. It was decorated nicely, loved the h2o zone, flowrider, pools, and the promenade.

 

The service was also very good. My room attendant could have been better, waiter was great, assistant waiter spoke little english.

 

Sorrentos has the nicest crew in there. Best pizza by far, and the guys in there, fantastic. They did magic tricks every time they saw you.

 

Windjammer could have been better. I was not impressed with the food, the only bad thing of the ship, but you could never tell, as I probably gained 20 pounds. The soda package was definely worth it.

 

As I said production and main shows were outstanding, best by far at sea.

 

Ports of call kept getting better. Puerto Rico was nice, did a segway and el morro tour, no shopping. St. Thomas took the godfrey tour (will get into that later). Then St. Maarten was the best. Did all my shopping, then I went to great bay beach, loved it, and then did a 1/2 hour wave runner right off the beach. Great great great.

 

Getting on the off the ship was easy at the ports, no wait at all. I was very suprised.

 

Getting on in Miami was also great, as my grandma was a diamond, got priority, got right on, no wait.

 

Getting off the ship was okay. We got right off today at 7:00, grey tags, (thats when they were called) right through customs. At 7:20, started to wait for bags. 8:40, still waiting. I must have saw the white tagged bags 50 million times, that was the only thing bad.

 

Usair down was great, got us there early.

 

Sleep Inn and Suites FLL was okay for a night. Will get into that later too.

 

Southwest coming back was also a nice flight, but I regret doing a layover. I am beat.

 

Quality Limo Service was very nice, on time, nice van, enough room for 12 and 22 bags, nice driver. the only thing I didn't like was he stopped to get gas both times he had us.

 

FLL was a nice airport, loved the Dunkin Donuts in it.

BWI was also nice, got a SNACK SNACK SNACK at Auntie Annes. (Anybody who was on 10/7 sailing or who saw Dan Wilson will know why I did that to snack.)

PIT, always a pleasure to get back home. My favorite airport.

 

That was only a preview. I plan to write my review when I have time, I will probably write it in word, and then paste it on here.

 

Til then, can't wait for Liberty of the Seas 10/04/2008.

 

BTW, the anytime dining seemed to be going good, but that was only through observations. There were lines, people waiting, but nothing extreme, probably 5 mintues tops. And Cindy Dangel, the Loyalty and Cruise Sales Manager was the nicest, friendliest person on the ship, always a pleasure to talk to, and to have book your next cruise. AWESOME!

[DonnaK]

Thank you for posting. I think many of us are anxiously waiting news from your sailing, to learn more about the anytime dining experience.

[Hypo]

We had traditional, but I did talk to some who had anytime. For this first week they limited it to about 250 people and were only using one side of the deck 5 dining room for anytime. No one seemed to know if or when they were going to increase the numbers of people doing anytime. The folks I talked to said it was OK, but you had different waiters and were seated with other folks each night.

 

Hypo

[SherriZ366]

We had traditional, but I did talk to some who had anytime. For this first week they limited it to about 250 people and were only using one side of the deck 5 dining room for anytime. No one seemed to know if or when they were going to increase the numbers of people doing anytime. The folks I talked to said it was OK, but you had different waiters and were seated with other folks each night.

 

Hypo

Hypo -- we've been waiting for your assessment of the open dining experiment. Do you know if there will be more space for open dining on this week's sailing. The description of the folks who had open sounds like just what I don't want and why I oppose open dining. Thanks for posting!!!!

 

and Cot427 -- thanks for starting the thread and we're looking forward to your review.

[kittymom65]

Welcome Home!

I am looking forward to the full review!

[Apoggi]

Welcome back! Did you book another cruise while on Freedom? I can't wait to read your full review.

[Tranquil Waters]

We had traditional, but I did talk to some who had anytime. For this first week they limited it to about 250 people and were only using one side of the deck 5 dining room for anytime. No one seemed to know if or when they were going to increase the numbers of people doing anytime. The folks I talked to said it was OK, but you had different waiters and were seated with other folks each night.

 

Hypo

 

Did they limit it to 250 or was that all that "volunteered" for this lovely experiment? I would be quite content to know that this was all that signed up for anytime dining - that would let RCI know loud and clear what their customer base wanted. :)

[cot427]

I booked the Liberty of the Seas for 10/4/2008 next year. It is for Western Caribbean. There should be at least 12 going, if not more. So far, we booked 4 cabins onboard, and I wanted to book for my friend, but didn't have to credit card info, so I am booking her Wednesday, and she'll have the same onboard credit as me.

 

I am going to start my review now. It should take a day or so to finish, or maybe tonight. Will check back later. Any other questions?

[It'sRC4ME]

Can't wait to see your review. When did you board the ship in Miami? We got the "orange card" with our documents telling us not to show up until 2:00 PM. On other cruises we've headed for the port around 11:00. I was going to "split the difference" with RC and leave for the port at 12:00. We are diamond too, so hopefully that will help smooth things along.

[cot427]

I will get into that when I do my review, but we headed out around 11:45 from FLL hotel, and got to pier by 12:30. Checkin and security was a breeze. After I got my seapass with my grandma, went zipped through. Diamond members and + get a priority card after people get there seapass cards. Usually you get a number and then they call the number and you can board. The 3 of us got priority card and went right up the escalator and right onto the Freedom.

 

They were calling number 14 and the rest of my family had number 19. We got the soda cards in the mean time, and then got two tables in the windjammer and waited for them, which was about 20 minutes later.

[SherriZ366]

Did they limit it to 250 or was that all that "volunteered" for this lovely experiment? I would be quite content to know that this was all that signed up for anytime dining - that would let RCI know loud and clear what their customer base wanted. :)

Hope this was the scenario. I remember some posts on this board that indicated that the RCI staffer in charge of informing upcoming FOS passengers about the open dining option was having a hard time selling it.

[EggDropErin]

Welcome back. Glad to hear you enjoyed your trip. She is one pretty ship.

[cot427]

Okay, here is Saturday and Sunday (Day 1).

 

Ready for my 10/07/2007 Freedom cruise vacation.

 

Here are a few things to mention:

Captain: Manolis Kasselas

Cruise Director: Richard Spacey

Loyalty Ambassador: Cindy Dangel

Hotel Director: Martin Rissley; Assistant: Michael Rasmussen

Chief Engineer: Risto Kurilic

 

Okay here it is.

 

Saturday

My Usair flight was at 8:30, so I wanted leave the house around 4:30 to go pick up my grandma and cousin. We had my sister’s and my friend stay over along with my dad’s friend. We all got up around 4:00, the adults a little earlier. We loaded up my dad’s friend’s pickup truck with most of the luggage, and then some in the other SUV. We left around 4:45 and picked up my grandma down the road. She was all ready, had 3 luggage between 2 people, so there was enough room. We ended up leaving the house around 5:00 and it was a breeze. Parkway East was smooth, no traffic. Then, parkway west was nice until a little closer to the airport, there was construction, down to one lane, but it wasn’t too bad. We arrived at the airport and parking the cars in the extended lot, 6.75 per day. The shuttle bus picked us up and dropped the 8 of us off at the airport, lower level. We took the elevator up to Usair checkin, checked the 8 of us in, and noticed the other 3 that met us at the airport already checked in. They beat us there. Anyway, we checkin in, then took the bags to the end of the hall and off to security. The security line was the worst I have ever seen it at Pittsburgh, at it was about 6:10 when we got there. We waited in line for about 30 minutes and about 6:45 we were through. Nobody got stopped. We took the tram to airside and met all up. I went down to McDonals to get a cappuccino and the au bon pain for a bagel. We all at the the gage.

 

8:00 they started to board the plane, it was pretty much full. We had rows 12 and 13. The flight left at 8:25, 5 minutes early, and arrived in FLL at 10:30, as a pose to the scheduled time of 11:06. We were 35 minutes early. We then went down to baggage claim and waited about 20 minutes. I called Sleep Inn and suites and they said the shuttle would be there in 15 minutes. We waited where they said to wait; it ended up being about 30 minutes. The van just fit the 11 of us and luggage.

 

It was about 5 minutes. The surrounding areas to the hotel were not nice. It was run down in my opinion. We arrived in the hotel, and it was nice. We checked in, and at 2 rooms for 12. They were on the 2nd floor, rooms 209 and 210. 210 was very nice, smelled good. Room number 209 smelled horrible. We immediately went down to the front desk and asked for a room. They agreed in a hurry, and got room 211 which was much better. The rooms at 2 queen beds, 1 pullout couch, a nice window, a nice big bathroom with a dirty shower, a nice big desk with a comfortable chair.

 

The elevators in the hotel were very slow. I think slower than the elevators on the ship, which had 14 floors to do. We had lunch at an Italian restaurant across the street. It was horrible and I do not recommend it. After lunch, we met up with my aunt who was going on the cruise with us. Her family brought her, because we wanted to see them, so we visited with them for about 4 hours. We brought some hot items, chips, dessert, and drinks at a Publix across the street, and set up a little buffet in the hotel breakfast area. It was very nice. After they left, we watched baseball on the big screen tv in the breakfast area. Around 9:00 we headed back to the room. At 9:30, I was in bed. The others in the other room went to the Mexican restaurant across the street. They said it was awesome.

 

(Sunday) Day 1:

We woke up around 7:30 and headed down to the breakfast area. There were waffles, cereals, pastries, biscuits and sausage, and fruits. We all ate, walked around outside, went to the dollar store, and Walgreens. At 11:00, we all gathered together for our 11:30 pickup from the hotel to the port courtesy of Quality Limo Service. They picked us up at 11:45 and we were on our way to the port of Miami. It took about 45 minutes, we arrived at the port by 12:30. We got out our seapasses, and went inside. First was security, which was about 10 minute wait. Then, we went right up to checkin and get our seapass cards. It took about 15 minutes for all 4 cabins. After this was another line where they look at your seapass cards. Then, another line where they hand your number cards, and priority if you are diamond or d+. My grandma just turned diamond, so we got to go right to the ship, while the others had number 19. They were calling 14 when we left, so it took them about 20 minutes to get through.

 

We got on Freedom of the Seas, and went up to deck 11. We went out to the H2O zone, and bought 2 soda cards from Squeeze. After that, we admired the H2O zone for a second, and then into the Windjammer. We got 2 tables in the back, and got some food while waiting for the others. It was about 2:15 now, so after this, we walked around, went to my cabin. It was awesome. I loved the new bedding and the flat screen tv. We had cabins 6657, 6659, and cabin 6661. The other cabin was a promenade, cabin 6597. I checked out the room, and I did not like the setup of the promenade cabins. We then went to the onair club to watch sports. The Steeler game was on, and we watched it. We won, and it was over around 4:00. We walked around the promenade a little after the game, and it was awesome. At 4:10 we went back to the rooms, go the lifevests, and then headed down to the muster station, deck 4, C20. It was very hot. It took about 20 minutes from when we got there at 4:20. After this, we stopped back and put the vests away, and went back to deck 12 to watch us sailaway. It was very cool, took some pictures, watched. It was nice, and then dinner. We went to get ready, because all of our luggage was already there. Dinner was the Bon Voyage dinner, but I forgot what the menus were for some dinner, and I don’t know what I ordered. Out waiter was Dariusz from Poland, and assistant waiter was Xinggang from China. He spoke very little English and had trouble communicating with him.

 

After dinner, we headed straight to the show, because it was 7:45 the first night. We sit in the last two rows of on the balcony of deck 5 as soon as you walk in the port side doors. I love those seats. We got introduced to the Cruise Director, Richard Spacey who was the most awesome, best CD in the world. He was so funny. The acts for tonight were comedian Miguel Washington, who funny, but not they funny. Then Agnes and Peter. They were also awesome. They do an act where they climb ropes and stretch and other stuff. It was very cool. The show wasn’t that long. We just sat in Sorrentos after this. We looked around the Royal Promenade. We explored the ship and more pizza now. The crew that works in Sorrentos does magic tricks. Martin and Apit ‘Armpit” are the best. They mad a cherry turn into a can of coke, a broken toothpick turn into a fixed toothpick and more. After this was the Party around the world parade. It was awesome. We got a front row seat and table at Sorrentos. After the 11:15 parade, we headed to bed around 12:00. That was all for day 1.

 

BTW: The drink of the day was Tequilla Sunrise. (tequilla, orange juice, grenadine).

We also made an appointment with Cindy today, for Friday at 9:30.

[Hypo]

Did they limit it to 250 or was that all that "volunteered" for this lovely experiment? I would be quite content to know that this was all that signed up for anytime dining - that would let RCI know loud and clear what their customer base wanted. :)

 

 

the two couples that I met said that it was limited for this first week. They did not know if the numbers were going to be raised for the future weeks of the test of anytime. There opinions of it were it was just "OK", one said they preferred it over traditional, but it wasn't a deal breaker on making thier choice of which cruise to take. The one time I went by the deck 5 dining room, there was a short line, about 3 couples, so I would guess that the wait wasn't too long.

 

Hypo

[SherriZ366]

the two couples that I met said that it was limited for this first week. They did not know if the numbers were going to be raised for the future weeks of the test of anytime. There opinions of it were it was just "OK", one said they preferred it over traditional, but it wasn't a deal breaker on making thier choice of which cruise to take. The one time I went by the deck 5 dining room, there was a short line, about 3 couples, so I would guess that the wait wasn't too long.

 

Hypo

Thanks for the info. Sounds either like it got a lukewarm reception or that RCI may fine tune the option during the next few weeks of the trial.

[Tranquil Waters]

Thanks for the info. Sounds either like it got a lukewarm reception or that RCI may fine tune the option during the next few weeks of the trial.

 

If "anytime" is something that RCI really wants - for cost reasons (in and out, less time, fewer courses, less food used, etc.) - then it makes sense that they would limit things so there would be the appearance that "all is going well". They certainly wouldn't want long lines for people to see and report on........ :D

[SherriZ366]

If "anytime" is something that RCI really wants - for cost reasons (in and out, less time, fewer courses, less food used, etc.) - then it makes sense that they would limit things so there would be the appearance that "all is going well". They certainly wouldn't want long lines for people to see and report on........ :D

It sounded a bit disjointed from a recent passenger's experience as per post #90 on this page of a thread on Anytime Dining: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=12011595#post12011595

[cot427]

Monday (Day 2)

Our first day at sea. The weather was not so nice today. It was not a pool day, until about 4:00. I woke up around 8:00, and most of us ate in the main dining room. The breakfast was okay, I got an omelet at it was really good. The service in the morning depends on the personality of the waiter. That morning, it was not so good. After this, we had a newbie in our group, so I took him on a tour of the ship, top to bottom. It took about a ½ hour. The others stood in line for the ice show tickets. Main show people be advised to get the Tuesday, 9:00 show.

 

We went to bingo, our first session at 11:00. After this, we ate lunch. We all met up and ate in the main dining room for lunch. I got the tutti pasta. I did not care for it, being Italian and all. I think they put nutmeg or something in it. The dessert was good, I got the cheesecake, cookies and cream.

 

After lunch, we walked around the ship, shopping, and then around 4:00, the sun came out. It was so nice. I put on my suit with sister and friend, and we went swimming and the H2O zone. At 5:00, I went to my cabin to get ready for dinner. It was formal night, the captain’s gala dinner. We had table 302, as soon as you get into the dining room, the big 12 person table on the starboard side. It was next to the captains table as well. I think tonight was the filet. It was very good, escargot and filet. And I think the dessert was grand mariner soufflé. It was to die for. We left around 7:20, and the captain came in at 7:30, so we missed him. (I did not see him the whole trip, he didn’t even come to the members reunion.)

 

After dinner we went back to change into something a little less formal. I then went ice skating with my sister and friends. Then, we went to get out seats for the production show “Marquee”. It was the best show ever. It combined some of the best Broadway shows ever. The singers and dancers were fantastic. I thought it was the best show I ever saw.

 

After that, I walked around, went to Sorrentos for pizza and that fabulous mouse they have everyday. Then, the adults went to Late Night Comedy with the comedian from the welcome aboard show, Miguel Washington. I went to bed around 12:30.

 

(Wednesday) Day 3

Today is Puerto Rico day. We woke up late today, around 8:30 or 9:00 and went to the Windjammer for breakfast. It was a great pool day. After breakfast we all went up to the pool area and relaxed. I loved the freshwater pools, the H2O zone, and the whirlpools. I got a lot of sun today. We went to lunch at Johnny Rockets today. We ate around 12:45. My aunt had a massage at 2:00. It was okay, I got the Chili Fries and a Chocolate Malt. I loved the malt, it was great. The service in Johnny Rockets are very good, as well as the food.

 

My aunt left for her massage at 2:00, she ordered a Swedish massage. She said it was the best one she ever got. We just went back to the cabin and got ready for Puerto Rico. I took a shower, since I would have less time to get ready before dinner. We met my aunt at 3:00 in Sorrentos. One of the crew members entertained us before she got there with magic. He broke a toothpick and then fixed it. We got off the ship around 3:15, and got a taxi. The taxi driver was rude, but I guess you have to in San Juan with the drivers.

 

We saw the guy with the Segways, he was not ready for us until 4:00, which was the time of my tour. It was so nice up there by el morro, a nice breeze. My 2 aunts and grandma waited for me and my aunt to be done. The Segway for me was easy to driver, but my aunt struggled. He took us down bumpy hills, we saw the gate, the fort, the governors house, a few other places. It was nice for 45 minutes. Riding the segways was funner than the actual tour.

 

We ended around 5:00, and headed down to the pier. I ran up the hill to get a t-shirt, 3.50. It was nice. At 5:30, we went to the ship and got dressed for dinner. It was the crown and anchor dinner. 50-70s attire or casual worked tonight. Dinner was very good, and the dessert was good too. We ate until 7:30, because we arrived for dinner a little late tonight. After that, we went to the ice show at 9:00. We seats early and got a few drinks, virgin for me. Today’s drink of the day was the cocoloco. It was dark rum, pina colada, papaya, orange juice, and grenadine. The ice show was all about Freedom. It was great. I thought it was one of the best ice shows out of 4 ships that have them besides the Mariner.

 

After this, we went to Sorrentos, got a snack, and then it was time for the 70s. 70’s song tribute was at 10:30 with 2 singers Joel and Raquel. They were fantastic. Then it was time for dancing in the street with the greatest hits from the 70s. The cruise director Richard Spacey was awesome here, he was hilarious. We actually went into a lady’s promenade stateroom who was watching and danced with her in a firemans outfit. After this, I went to sleep around 11:30.

 

(Wednesday) Day 4

It was hard to believe it was day 4. I got up early, around 7:30 because we had a tour scheduled for 10:00 with Godfrey, with all 12 of us. We ate in the Windjammer. Then, we walked a mile and got our shipshape dollars while watching the Carnival Valor come into port and dock. It was awesome. The Freedom docks in the back, and then Valor just comes right in behind the Freedom, passes it, and pulls in the front.

 

We all met at Sorrentos, and got off at 9:30. Godfreys tours had our name up, we had his tour guide Curt Burley. We saw godfrey in town and mountaintop. We waited for one other family who had the 2 hrs shopping. The first thing we did here was go directly to the place my mom got her jewelry last year, Gold Mine. Everybody bought there Jewelry here, my aunt bought earrings, other aunt bought earrings, bracelet, and ring. My mom bought a bracelet. After this, we went to get little souvineers at the flea market and then it was time for the tour to begin at 12:00. We started up the hill, we stopped a few times to point out landmarks. I thought we were going to heaven. We just kept going up higher and higher. Then, it was mountaintop, we stopped and one person bought a banana daiquiri, it was like 8.00 dollars. We saw all the surrounding islands, and magens bay looked so pretty. Finally, off to the beach.

 

We chose to go to magens bay. It costed an extra 4.00 dollars pp. I thought that it was not worth it. The water and scenery is what you pay for. The sand part was dirty, but they did have shower areas and an expensive gift shop and restaurant. My personal opinion, a tourist trap. (One of the Most beautiful beaches in the world)

 

It took about an hour to get back (we stopped at coki and picked up 4 people). We got back to the ship around 4:30. I was literally falling asleep in an open aired van. It was horrible. I went back and just laid down and then got dressed for dinner.

 

Dinner was the surf dinner, shrimp and beef. The beef I got was an end piece, it was not good. I did not care for it. Appitizers and desserts are always good.

 

9:00 was the magic show, Now you see it starring Philip Kaiser. He was fantastic. It was a great show. As I said every night, Freedom has the best entertainment at sea.

 

We stayed in the theater for the love and marriage game show. It was so so so funny, my favorite show ever, and I laughed so much. Richard is awesome. Anyone who saw it will no what an 18D is. It lasted about an hour and a half. Then, it was time for the poolside buffet. There were a ton of people there, a ton of food, desserts, ice cream. It was awesome. I wanted choc covered strawberries, but could not find them anywhere since they did away with the gala buffet. At 1:00, I went to bed.

 

Stay tuned until tomorrow, I’ll try to get Days 5, 6, 7, and departure day on here.

[It'sRC4ME]

The Steeler game was on, and we watched it. We won, and it was over around 4:00. .

 

I'm glad you team won. What struck me was that when we boarded Grandeur in Baltimore in September of last year, the Steeler game was on then too. And there were a lot of folks in Steeler jerseys. At first we thought that maybe they were playing the Ravens, but they weren't. I wonder if there is some sort of blanket policy at RC that if they are going to show a football game they will show a Steeler game.

[SherriZ366]

I'm glad you team won. What struck me was that when we boarded Grandeur in Baltimore in September of last year' date=' the Steeler game was on then too. And there were a lot of folks in Steeler jerseys. At first we thought that maybe they were playing the Ravens, but they weren't. I wonder if there is some sort of blanket policy at RC that if they are going to show a football game they will show a Steeler game.[/quote']

Sounds like a good idea. I'm originally from the Pittsburgh area and a Steeler fan. When we sailed on Jewel in Jan. of 2006, the sports bar for the Steeler Colts playoff game was SRO. Guess just lots of Pittsburghers or former Pittsburghers sail on RCCL.

cot427 -- enjoying your review. Please keep it coming.

[Jeka]

the two couples that I met said that it was limited for this first week. They did not know if the numbers were going to be raised for the future weeks of the test of anytime. There opinions of it were it was just "OK", one said they preferred it over traditional, but it wasn't a deal breaker on making thier choice of which cruise to take. The one time I went by the deck 5 dining room, there was a short line, about 3 couples, so I would guess that the wait wasn't too long.

 

Hypo

 

Thanks for the info. Sounds either like it got a lukewarm reception or that RCI may fine tune the option during the next few weeks of the trial.

 

Sherriz366, how did you conclude lukewarm? If you can continue to have traditional, why do you care if others want an option? You seem to be reading too much into these comments.

 

COT427, thanks for your thorough review. It's great.

[SherriZ366]

Sherriz366, how did you conclude lukewarm? If you can continue to have traditional, why do you care if others want an option? You seem to be reading too much into these comments.

 

"just OK" sounds lukewarm to me.

[cot427]

Later tonight, I will review days 5 and 6. I'm not sure if I can get through 7-8 today, it will probably be tomorrow. Anyone taking advantage of the sale tomorrow? We were going to book someone that wanted to go when we were on the Freedom, but did not have there info, so I am calling tomorrow for them. Is RCI open 24 hrs for bookings, because I used interval for my bookings in the past, but my travel agent when to "look for himself" and never came back. So I guess he did not find himself yet.

[SherriZ366]

Later tonight, I will review days 5 and 6. I'm not sure if I can get through 7-8 today, it will probably be tomorrow. Anyone taking advantage of the sale tomorrow? We were going to book someone that wanted to go when we were on the Freedom, but did not have there info, so I am calling tomorrow for them. Is RCI open 24 hrs for bookings, because I used interval for my bookings in the past, but my travel agent when to "look for himself" and never came back. So I guess he did not find himself yet.

Looking forward to 5&6. I don't think RCI is open 24 hours for bookings but is open in the evenings, I think -- to 7 or 9 PM.

[cot427]

(Thursday) Day 5

Today is Thursday, St. Maarten Day. I wasn’t in a hurry to get off the ship, neither was my family, so we just took it slow. I got up and we were already docked, it was around 8:00. I ate breakfast with my aunt in the dining room, the others went up to the Windjammer, they like it better. Breakfast was very good, I got the Fast Fare breakfast, service was great, food was hot, and everything was fine.

 

After breakfast, I went back to the room, to put on my bathing suit and we met up with the others. We ended up getting off the ship around 10:00, there were 6, the other 6 got off earlier. I gave them a walkie talkie so we can find them later on. We all got the roundtrip water taxi tickets, and we got off at the second stop, near downtown, not uptown (Bobby Marina). The weather was great, it was really hot. We started out by going shopping, stopping at all the shops, jewelry, perfume, linens, souvenirs, purses, etc. We ended up at the old street (old town) and we went to Kenny’s where the souvenirs were 4 for 10. He also had a place for liquor across the street. That is also where the chocolate shop is, where they have a free sampler coupon that is handed out on the water taxi. After shopping, 2 of us went back to the ship, while the other 3 and I went to eat. We ended up at Burger King, and then after that we went to the beach.

 

We found them down at the beach, a long walk down on the boardwalk. It was nice, they already had 4 chairs and 2 umbrellas. For 2 chairs and 1 umbrella, it is 10 dollars. So we decided to get one more set. As soon as I got there, the people next to us came back from renting a wave runner. They said it was awesome, so I decided to try it with another person in my group. It was 45 dollars for a half hour, which was plenty of time. They rent them right there on the beach. It was really fun. We stayed to the right side of the beach, switched drivers in the middle, and I got it to about 40mph. It was very fun, entertaining, and you can get good views of the island out there.

 

After this, I went into the Great Bay Beach water. It was very nice. I don’t know why everyone didn’t like it, there were a lot of people there. The water was just right. You could get tons of shells there, close to drinks, to the pier, has a boardwalk, and shopping comes to you. These ladies sell stuff right on the beach. Some of us bought a few things right there.

 

At around 4:30, we headed back to the ship, and by 4:45, we were on. Boarding the ship in port was so easy, not line at all. We went right up to the cabin, showered, and then went to dinner. Tonights dinner was the Italian night, Venetian feast. That’s where the dining staff sings on the stairs, it was very nice.

 

The show tonight was the Headliner show, staring Scott Record. It was at 9:00, so we got there around 8:30, and talked a while. Scott Record was so good. He was an impressionist/comedian, but he was a better impressionist. He really was not that funny, but did great voices and had a great singing voice. A show not to miss.

 

After this, there was a ton of things to do, but we just walked around, talked, ate some more, and found a few things to do. There were other things to do tonight we decided to skip. Senses in Vintages was at 10:00, there was a 7:00 ice show, battle of the sexes was at 10:30, and that’s pretty much it. We went to sleep around 12:00.

 

(Friday) Day 6

Today was a nice pool day. The weather was nice, hot and the sun was out. We ate in the windjammer today, and then went outside to get our chairs. At 9:00, they had a huge t shirt sale outside by the H2O zone. They were 2 for 20, and of course there was a mob of people there. There was also a lot more besides shirts. At 9:30, we had a appointment with Cindy. We all booked 4 rooms for the Liberty of the Seas next Oct. 4, for the Western Caribbean. It was lunch in the windjammer after some sun. It was okay. After this, it was the Men’s international belly flop competition hosted by the one, the only Richard Spacey. It was great, very funny, and not to miss.

 

After this, it was win a cruise bingo. We did not win a cruise, but we did win something. We won a big chunk of change. By 5:05, I went back to the cabin to change into my formal wear and take a shower. Tonight was lobster night, great food tonight. I had 2 lobsters, but I used to have more. They are not as happy to give you seconds or thirds anymore like they used to. One cruise, the waiter just kept bringing them over and over, until I had to say stop. I guess with so many people, you don’t have enough.

 

After dinner, we went to change again and walk around, and at 8:30 went to the Arcadia for The Production show Once Upon a Time. The show was at 9:00, and it was great. It was a combination of fairy tales like Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, Pinocchio, and more. It was great, truly one of the best shows at sea.

 

After this, we walked around, shopped, went to Sorrentos, and then went to sleep again around 12:30. Other things to do tonight were Quest, 20 Nightclub poolside, Studio 84, dancing and music from the 80’s.

 

Stay Tuned tomorrow for Day 7 and Debarkation Day (A Very Sad Day).