1/21 Liberty Retailer Therapy 2.0 Cruise – Trip n Ship Report

[carncruiser1964]

FINALLY, a Great review WITH pictures of the Liberty. Hubby and I will be on her in March, but doing the Western side. Loving your review so far. Thanks! :D

[SMSACE6]

Loving the review! I cant wait till my turn on the Liberty:)

[Froufie]

Another gathering coordinated through the roll call, I made teatime on the first sea day. This was the first time I’d “done tea” on a sailing. I liked it! Froufie – I thoroughly enjoyed having tea with you and the girls! It was a perfect afternoon. I had a mint tea that I really liked. I should have paid better attention to it so I could buy it at home. I’m not really Miss Observant.

 

 

 

Glad you enjoyed "Funtime Teatime with Froufie and Friends!" :D:D (it's actually about 3:30 pm here now - and I'd much rather be at teatime than back here watching the snow fall :( ).

 

Loving the review and the pics - but anxiously awaiting Miss Moo's opinions and review;)

[NeuroQueen]

Loving your review....especially the cocktail porn. You are my kind of cruiser!!!

[parrothead74]

We need more! Great review! What deck were your cabins on?

[soccersharon]

Really enjoying your review and drink porn! Keep it comin' ... will be revisiting my old friend, Liberty in March!

[vacruizer]

Are you and M5 out for cocktails and not writing more? :p:p:p

[ahoys]

BSQ: Thank you for this review and the photos. This is the same itinerary we're taking in July and I love a good preview of our cruise.

 

Froufie: You know, this review doesn't take you off the hook. After your Destiny review, I'm a fan! Hope your own review is in the works?

 

Kathy

[jimbug]

Can't wait for more!!

[BSQ]

Are you and M5 out for cocktails and not writing more? :p:p:p

 

 

Patience dear friend. Editing takes time. Yeah I know, hard to believe but I do edit myself. Certain details, though a bit fuzzy are intentionally left out of this writing ... leaving more to the imagination. :D

[BSQ]

OTHER SHIPPING THINGS

 

SERENITY DECK

 

OK, so I thought I would be spending a lot of time on the Serenity Deck. Turns out the only time I was up here was just after boarding. I had the whole place to myself.

 

During sea days though, every seat was taken. Some by people, some by towels. Just as well, they had an odd choice for music piped into the area.

 

I much preferred my own personal serenity deck outside my stateroom, with no one else around, I turned on my tunes with out headphones and enjoyed the sunshine. Perfect.

 

PUNCHLINER COMEDY CLUB

 

I saw 3 of the 4 comedians that performed. I liked all of them, and enjoy the setting of the Punchliner Comedy Club. On are sailing was Jorge Solano, Tommy Drake, Percy Crews and Don Barnhart (didn’t see him). I went to the Midnight shows, and did not see their family shows. Drink service was a little slow in this lounge, instead I ordered a drink from the Alchemy bar and brought it in with me. That my friends, was a good set up.

 

SHOWS

 

I think I actually saw all the shows on this sailing. (A first for me). The Welcome Aboard Show, Wonderful World, Soulman of Bourbon Street with Ron Joseph, Just Rock and Carnival Legends. I like the Soulman, and Just Rock the best. I really enjoyed the music of them both. (that’s the band geek in me coming out). The Liberty Dancers were really high energy, and that was projected out to the audience. The singers Bree and Bentley were good, and the cougar … er lady that squealed every time Bentley was center stage was amusing to both me and my friends seated next to me.

 

I attended the Love and Marriage show, or what ever they are calling it now adays (the Game of Love), and caught for the first time Liars Club (I’d probably skip this next time).

 

 

I saw 3 of the 4 comedians that performed. I liked all of them, and enjoy the setting of the Punchliner Comedy Club. On are sailing was Jorge Solano, Tommy Drake, Percy Crews and Don Barnhart (didn’t see him). I went to the Midnight shows, and did not see their family shows. Drink service was a little slow in this lounge, instead I ordered a drink from the Alchemy bar and brought it in with me. That my friends, was a good set up.

[BSQ]

Our CD was Karl with a K. A high energy guy, who really can put together a great deck party. The DJ they had out by the pool was good and kept the crowds going. The friend’s I was traveling with always seem to drag me out to these things, I might have to admit I kind of had fun.

 

Red Frog Caribbean Beach Party

 

 

Well, aren’t you supposed to party till the cows come home??

 

Blue Iguana’s Mexican Fiesta – a top notch night. The second pitcher of margaritas seemed like a good idea at the time ….. :D

 

 

 

 

Yeah, I might have hugged a couple people on this night.

Mardi Gras Celebration – this one was in the lobby, but it was the night before we had an early port. The crowd was small, and I didn’t stick around for most of it. I don’t think I had my camera for this one. But I do have some beads! WhoooHoooo!

[BSQ]

WELCOME TO HALF MOON CAY!

 

For this port, I’d booked a cabana through the online shore excursions shortly after I booked the cruise. They went quickly. Hands down, this was a great decision.

 

When I boarded the ship I headed straight to the Shore Excursions Desk to pick out my cabana. I selected #7 I think it was Peach. At the time I selected it, they needed me to give them the number of people, size of fins, and soft drinks I’d wanted. I had asked in someone else’s review if they had to know all this on the spot and he was given a green sheet of paper to fill out and bring back later.

 

I saw some people had the green sheets of paper filled out, but I didn’t have one. I had to make on the fly decisions. I opted not to get snorkel gear, and just selected two of each kind of soda (2 per person). 2 large bottles of water were included as well. All the beverages were in an ice chest at the Cabana when we arrived. There was a tray of fresh fruit, a vegetable tray with dip, a bag of chips, and three dips (salsa, guacamole, and sour cream). I have no clue why I didn’t take a picture of the cabana or any of the goodies. We didn’t have the float mats, but really wouldn’t have used them. The water was a bit on the chilly side and none of us went in much.

 

Why I liked the location of #7:

 

It was close enough to the pirate ship to hear the music but not close enough to be obnoxious. It was just far enough away from the crowds, the bathrooms were just off the next cabana over, and it was a short walk to the BBQ lunch area.

 

For lunch four of us divided and conquered. One person got a plate of burgers, another a plate of jerk chicken, another a plate of sides, and the last a plate of deserts. Grabbed a handful of forks, condiments and napkins and we were in and out of there in minutes. We took everything back to the cabana to enjoy lunch at our own table.

 

It was a great day at the beach … and I don’t even like the beach! (don’t analyze, just smile n nod).

 

 

[BSQ]

WELCOME TO ST. THOMAS!

 

 

 

On my last trip I’d decided I didn’t see enough of St. Thomas. This trip I booked a Sunny Liston Sightseeing tour. My tour guide was Elvis.

 

 

 

As you can see it was overcast. The higher we went on the island, the colder I got. Here’s a view of Megans Bay from MountainTop.

 

[BSQ]

 

I thought this Banana Daquiri was just so-so.

 

Sapphire Beach …

 

Here’s my tip if you go on this tour or one like it. Take the first seat on any row. Otherwise you’ll be holding on like this the whole time:

 

 

The tour was a good way to get the highlights. The full one starts with 1, 2 or 3 hours of shopping (I know SURPRISE!), the tour in the middle, and then some folks get dropped off at the beach, then back to port. I was dropped at the shops so I could look for some art souvenirs.

 

Sail Away was at night

[BSQ]

WELCOME TO SAN JUAN!!

 

In this port we toured on foot … without a map. :eek: We started at Castillo San Cristobal. Of the two forts, I like this one best. There is much more to see and explore here than at El Morro.

 

My camera battery was low so a lot of my pictures are on my cell phone. Oops!

 

From this fort we walked along the sidewalk towards the next fort. Two of us pealed off at the Cemetery. While the rest went on to the next fort.

 

Afterwards, we met up with a friend for lunch at the Parrot Club for some local cuisine and ice cold beers. For me this was a perfect afternoon. Good friends, good food, good conversation and laughter. It doesn’t get much better than this folks. After lunch we divided up and I headed off in search of RUMS!

 

Specifically DonQ.

 

I went to the Museum Store front, which I thought was interesting. I didn’t have enough time to thoroughly browse through all the displays, taste my rum , make my purchases and get back to the ship. Now at the start of this trip n ship I mentioned I was in search of Rum Education. I didn’t want to do the Bacardi Tour – as I already mentioned I don’t really care for big touristy tours. I’ve heard good things about that tour, but didn’t think it was for me.

 

I imagined myself learning about rums as I have tequilas. Visiting local places and chatting up the bartender or waitstaff. My fellow DEs on Trip Advisor were not able to offer much guidance in finding such and establishment.

 

In hindsight, this was probably over zealous of me. It’s taken me about 20 years worth of vacations to Cancun to build my tequila education, rum knowledge wasn’t going to happen in a few hours in San Juan. (if you ever go to Cancun I can point you to several places in which to experience Tequila).

 

I sprung for a bottle of DonQ Gran Anejo, and a few other bottles. Life is Good. Education to be continued!

[BSQ]

WELCOME TO GRAND TURK

 

From Half Moon Cay and St. Thomas I determined the water was too cold for me to enjoy snorkeling. This was a shame, I believe the true beauty of Grand Turk is in the ocean. We walked down to Jack’s Shack … had a drink and walked back. At the risk of offending many who enjoy this place, I would have been fine skipping it. There was another ship in port with us, and the beach was very crowded. Too crowded. The sun was hot. Ideally I would have liked to have found a less populated patch of beach with a little shade. Instead I browsed the shops (bought nothing) and went back to the ship. I never thought I’d see the day where I, BSQ, preferred being on the ship to being in port. :eek:

 

 

This shot just cracks me up..,

 

So not my thing…

 

 

We sailed away into the sunset…

[BSQ]

And with my last martini, suddenly I found my vacation coming to a close. Hugs all around dear people. Hugs all around.

 

[Mikel1733]

I'm enjoying your writing style and review. How refreshing" :)

[BSQ]

Debarkation was uneventful. Since I drove to port I wasn't rushed to get off the ship. A bit after my zone was called (9) I departed. It was an $8 cab ride to the lot where I'd parked my car. My car was still there so that was a bonus .. though it's in need of a good scrubbing. Five hours later I was back in Jacksonville doing laundry.

 

Some After Thoughts

 

Back at work now, when people ask me how I liked my vacation, my only reply is that it was wonderful. I, who is never short on words, find I am having a difficult time pining down just what it was that made this vacation so memorable. The vibe on the ship was definitely different from any other I'd been on. I think the FunShip 2.0 upgrades did enhance the on board experience. Karl with a K's energy is infectious. The Staff and Crew of the Liberty seemed so happy to be there, and enjoying their jobs. Every person I had the opportunity to chat with, or hug, was a pleasure to meet.

 

My full photo album is linked in my signature. I just let the camera urp into webshots, so the album isn't very organized and pictures aren't titled.

 

and now a word from my M5, my Cow.

[BSQ]

I'm back from the Libertys! Here's my photo album for you to enjoy. Unlike MooMoo's I have it organized all nice n pretty. Moo!!

 

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3236902804165.162412.1314589266&type=1&l=257a209c26

 

You can also follow me on Twitters ... @RoamingCow

 

I have to go now, BYE!

[BSQ]

We need more! Great review! What deck were your cabins on?

 

1004 is on Deck 10, Promenade. All the way at the very very front of the ship.

 

BSQ: Thank you for this review and the photos. This is the same itinerary we're taking in July and I love a good preview of our cruise.

 

Froufie: You know, this review doesn't take you off the hook. After your Destiny review, I'm a fan! Hope your own review is in the works?

 

Kathy

 

The first time I sailed on the Liberty it was during July a few years ago. It was furnace hot and humid in all the ports. :D

 

I'm enjoying your writing style and review. How refreshing" :)

Thanks so much! I write like a talk, except I'm waiving my hands around a little less.

[Froufie]

BSQ: Thank you for this review and the photos. This is the same itinerary we're taking in July and I love a good preview of our cruise.

 

Froufie: You know, this review doesn't take you off the hook. After your Destiny review, I'm a fan! Hope your own review is in the works?

 

Kathy

 

Already in the works (writing almost done) and downloading pics and organizing as well - hope to have it up this weekend! Stay tuned:D In the mean time I am definitely enjoying this review and reliving the cruise as well!

[Cmx3d]

Thanks for the great review and pictures. It worries me a little about the water being too cold, but wondering if it could be because you are from Florida???? The pics show people in the water so if anyone you talked to got in the water did they also think it was too cold?

[Jeffy294]

I loved the review. I could ditto all of your opinions of our cruise. Karl is hands down my favorite CD. The Alchemy bar was flipping awesome. Ate way to much in the supper club. The cabana was the shiz nit. Grand Turk was way to crowded. For others with stops in Grand Turk with another ship, either stay on the ship or take a tour that takes you far far away. I swear the P&O Azura unloaded half of Europe on the beach and you couldn't breathe it was so many people. Very friendly people at Jacks shack but it was packed. The pitchers of Margaritas did seem like a good idea at the time, but I could not drink enough water after them.