PHOTO REVIEW~Freedom, the 4th, and my 40th!

[NightOne]

Lol. 2 things. 1) We cruised out on the 4th of July. 2) We left from Texas, so it was a nod to their flag. :)

 

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Ah. Totally make sense now. Thanks LOL

[Martini Mom]

Ah. Totally make sense now. Thanks LOL

It's a weird thing that's popular now. We call it an accent nail. It's painted different than the others. Later this month I'll paint all of my nails royal blue and the ring fingernail will be painted like a football for my son's team. My husband prefers french manicures, but I like mixing it up :)

 

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[NightOne]

It's a weird thing that's popular now. We call it an accent nail. It's painted different than the others. Later this month I'll paint all of my nails royal blue and the ring fingernail will be painted like a football for my son's team. My husband prefers french manicures, but I like mixing it up :)

 

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It takes about 2-5 years for the West Coast fads to make it back this way. :)

 

As a male I am challenged when it comes to these things so I had to Google search "french manicure" and I learned that I always referred to those as "white tips" and therefore agree with your husband. LOL

 

And on that note ...

 

We now return you to you regularly scheduled cruise chatter already in progress. :)

[Martini Mom]

It takes about 2-5 years for the West Coast fads to make it back this way. :)

 

As a male I am challenged when it comes to these things so I had to Google search "french manicure" and I learned that I always referred to those as "white tips" and therefore agree with your husband. LOL

 

And on that note ...

 

We now return you to you regularly scheduled cruise chatter already in progress. :)

Hey cruise food, cruise fashion, cruise nails....it all counts :)

 

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[scuabacruiser]

So, apparently we're such lushes that the Alchemy Bar knew our crew well. They told us about a special Mixology class that isn't in the Fun Times. You have to sign up after you come back from Cozumel and the class is on your last sea day afternoon (at 3:30 or 4. I don't remember which. I blame the cocktails). They allow 11 to sign up, but only 8 of us actually showed up for the class. The put out a "private function" sign and the class began. Our master mixologist, Drazen of Bosnia, takes his profession very seriously and is very proud of his skill and knowledge. We received a history lesson, a demo on how to properly shake a shaker, how to dislodge the glass, how to light orange zest, samples cocktails, learned drink recipes, learned about homemade infusions, etc. etc. At the end, we each received (in addition to our free drinks during the class) a coupon for a free Alchemy Bar cocktail and a diploma. The whole thing was only $15 per person!!!

 

 

Great review! I usually don't make it through these, but yours is hitting the right spots and things we like to do. I will definitely let my wife know about this. It's right up her alley. She doesn't drink much, but she loves to make drinks for everyone.

[skittl1321]

It's a weird thing that's popular now. We call it an accent nail. It's painted different than the others. Later this month I'll paint all of my nails royal blue and the ring fingernail will be painted like a football for my son's team. My husband prefers french manicures, but I like mixing it up :)

 

 

I LOVE your Texas nails! You can totally tell it's an homage to the flag.

 

(And the "accent nail" has made it's way to Iowa- I love fun nail art, so it's one of my favorite things. Except I mostly wear Jamberry nail shields rather than pay to have someone do fancy nails for me.)

[Martini Mom]

Great review! I usually don't make it through these, but yours is hitting the right spots and things we like to do. I will definitely let my wife know about this. It's right up her alley. She doesn't drink much, but she loves to make drinks for everyone.

 

Thanks for the compliment! :D I usually prefer wine, but as I've said before, the Alchemy Bar is an experience and I had a great time. I also think it provides a more upscale venue for those times when you're in the mood for that. Sometimes I want to have a cheap beer and watch the hairy chest contest and sometimes I want a nice cocktail in a pretty venue :)

[Martini Mom]

I LOVE your Texas nails! You can totally tell it's an homage to the flag.

 

(And the "accent nail" has made it's way to Iowa- I love fun nail art, so it's one of my favorite things. Except I mostly wear Jamberry nail shields rather than pay to have someone do fancy nails for me.)

 

Thank you :D! I have tried Jamberry, but I work in surgery so the frequent handwashing, scrubbing, and harsh chemical just don't work for those. Some days I'm lucky to keep the skin on my hands and arms ;).

 

Here's a close up of my "Texas nails" ;)

 

[Martini Mom]

Dinner- Our last night

 

 

 

 

 

The is the Caribbean Pepper Pot and I was really excited about it, but it's very blah. No flavor. It tasted like a bland potato soup. I feel like I'm eating at an old folks home where they take out all of the spices.

 

 

This is the "Tiger Shrimp Creole". Mike complained that it was ok, but why were the shrimp so tiny. Where are the tiger prawns?

 

[Martini Mom]

For my main course I had the Ricotta Ravioli and it was one of the better dishes of the cruise. Who knew :)

 

 

The goofy, but fun napkin spinning song tradition

 

 

Me, with our sweet waiter Prang

 

[Martini Mom]

Btw, I know it sounds like I'm dogging on the food a lot. Granted, this particular cruise didn't have the best food. I don't know if it was a Freedom thing or a American Table menu thing, but it was very blah. It wasn't bad (except for a few things), just blah. We didn't go hungry AT ALL. Let's make that clear. :) Food is so subjective, so maybe you'll love some of the things we didn't. It just our opinion. We don't sail Carnival for fine dining, so we know what we're paying for, but this was just a notch below what we've had with Carnival before. If you are booked on the Freedom, don't worry. There are SO many food choices that I'm certain you'll find something you like. You just might need to be open to non-MDR options as well. I never thought I'd say that, but I guess flexibility is good. :)

[momof3cruisers]

It's a weird thing that's popular now. We call it an accent nail. It's painted different than the others. Later this month I'll paint all of my nails royal blue and the ring fingernail will be painted like a football for my son's team. My husband prefers french manicures, but I like mixing it up :)

 

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I had intended to comment that I loved your manicure!

[macsandy1957]

Can't thank you enough for your review. Got me super excited for the Freedom in December!

 

Do you happen to know how much the massages were at Nachi Cocom? That is our first port and thought it would be a nice treat!!! TIA

[MaiTaiMary]

Dinner- Our last night

 

 

 

 

Prime Rib on a "non-elegant" night?? :)

[Landlocked_N_Texas]

Exactly! They didn't do anything wrong, but it was just kind of a snooze. You're also right that it was even worse following our awesome day at LFK. The cavetubing water is SO shallow in fact, that we had to lift our butts up quite often so we wouldn't scrape them. I think my expectations were also too high because people raved about this excursion and even called it the "best excursion they've ever done."

 

I'm glad we saw the "interior" of Belize, it's nice to see how the locals live, but it seems like their crown jewel is their beautiful water and great snorkeling. Next time :)

 

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We went to Belize on the Magic in Dec. 2014 and used Cavetubing.bz. We had booked Cavetubing, but due to weather, they had to cancel (too much rain, so the caves were dangerous). They were very nice and offered us zip-lining as a substitute (for the same price!). I didn't want to go... I don't mind heights, but zip lining is out of my comfort zone. :)

However, it was the best experience! My husband (who hates heights, by the way) and my son loved it! The people were very professional and nice. Like you, I'm glad we saw the interior. I was bummed we missed cave tubing until I read your review!

I do have to disagree about the food. It wasn't very flavorful as far as seasoning, but we had several kids in our group. I think they have to cook to please many palates, so I can see how some find it bland. (For the record, we had bread fruit and iguana with iguana pepper salsa cooked on the beach in Roatan, so I think we're somewhat adventurous eaters!). It was the first time my son (11) had chicken with beans and rice, and he asks me to make it for him, so it made an impression on him!

 

I read somewhere that the time of year affects the speed and depth of water in the caves. I wonder if you were there in a "slow" season. Sounds like something kids and older people might enjoy - mild intensity and all...

[Martini Mom]

We went to Belize on the Magic in Dec. 2014 and used Cavetubing.bz. We had booked Cavetubing, but due to weather, they had to cancel (too much rain, so the caves were dangerous). They were very nice and offered us zip-lining as a substitute (for the same price!). I didn't want to go... I don't mind heights, but zip lining is out of my comfort zone. :)

However, it was the best experience! My husband (who hates heights, by the way) and my son loved it! The people were very professional and nice. Like you, I'm glad we saw the interior. I was bummed we missed cave tubing until I read your review!

I do have to disagree about the food. It wasn't very flavorful as far as seasoning, but we had several kids in our group. I think they have to cook to please many palates, so I can see how some find it bland. (For the record, we had bread fruit and iguana with iguana pepper salsa cooked on the beach in Roatan, so I think we're somewhat adventurous eaters!). It was the first time my son (11) had chicken with beans and rice, and he asks me to make it for him, so it made an impression on him!

 

I read somewhere that the time of year affects the speed and depth of water in the caves. I wonder if you were there in a "slow" season. Sounds like something kids and older people might enjoy - mild intensity and all...

We wanted to try the zip lining there too, but it would be a super tight fit for our schedule, so we decided against it. We will zip line on our Mexico cruise in December instead, weather permitting.

 

I'm sure the season does dramatically affect the water level, but I can't say that would have helped much. It's a good options for young families and seniors for sure. Again, it wasn't bad, just boring for us.

 

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[Martini Mom]

Prime Rib on a "non-elegant" night?? :)

I hadn't even noticed, lol. My eye goes straight for the seafood and non meat options.

 

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[Martini Mom]

Can't thank you enough for your review. Got me super excited for the Freedom in December!

 

Do you happen to know how much the massages were at Nachi Cocom? That is our first port and thought it would be a nice treat!!! TIA

 

30 min.: $40.00 usd

1 Hour: $70.00 usd

[Martini Mom]

Our last sunset of the cruise. So beautiful!

 

 

 

Sunrise as we pull into the port of Galveston. We always wake up early to watch as we pull into the ports and try to catch the sunrises. :)

 

 

 

 

Next up....my overall impressions of this ship and cruise :)

[CandyCruiser1106]

Awesome review! Will be on the Dream with same ports!

[Martini Mom]

My overall impressions of this ship/cruise: The “Reader’s Digest” version ;)

 

SHIP:

 

~The Galveston terminal is nice, clean, fast and the employees are friendly.

~The Freedom is clean, fun, has SO many amenities, and offered the BEST service we’ve ever received!

~The crew is so friendly, helpful and nice! Our cabin steward was amazing!

~The whole ship was too hot for us. The public indoor areas and our cabin were never cool enough. I am usually cold indoors and need a light sweater (I brought a few). Never on this cruise. With my husband’s MS, it made things a little difficult, but not unbearable. P.S.- The Texans didn’t seem to mind that much.

~The comedy on this ship was AWESOME and we spent hours and hours in there. It was one of the highlights of our cruise.

~The Alchemy Bar, Blue Iguana Cantina, and Red Frog Rum Bar are really nice additions. They are all new to us.

~The MDR food was eh; bland and not the best. I’m not sure if it was a Freedom thing or an American Table menu thing, since both were new to us. Service there was excellent though and the fun vibe was still alive and well.

~The shows still aren’t our fav, but they were better on this ship, especially the 80’s show. P.S.- The 80’s Trivia in the atrium was really fun!!!

~We love cruising with Texans. They are so friendly, open, and relaxed.

~FTTF was great for us and well worth the money.

~Here’s a first for us….we didn’t sit for a single professional pic. Not one. I usually drag Mike from backdrop to backdrop. I loved our candid pics and decided I didn’t want/need any pro pics this time. He was so happy. When we cruise with the whole fam in December though, all bets are off. ;)

~The social media internet package was a great deal and worked perfectly for us.

~Don't forget to check out the Fish and Chips area (above the buffet). This hidden gem offers a lot of great options.

~Overall it was a great ship and crew and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.

 

PORTS:

 

~Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Honduras- We LOVED loved loved this port! It reminds us a lot of the Eastern Caribbean ports we’ve visited. We can’t say enough awesome things about our Little French Key excursion. Even if you don’t go there, other beaches looked amazing.

~Belize- Cavetubing was okay. Not bad, but just okay. Next time we’ll book a water-based excursion in their beautiful turquoise water.

~Cozumel- Nachi Cocom was great. Excellent service, food, and environment.

 

I’m sure I’ll think of things to add later, but this covers the basics :)

[Martini Mom]

Awesome review! Will be on the Dream with same ports!

Thank you :) Enjoy your cruise!

 

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[adatex]

Great review! Looking forward to onboard Freedom in November and I see LFK in the next cruise planning.

[Martini Mom]

Great review! Looking forward to onboard Freedom in November and I see LFK in the next cruise planning.

Thank you :) I'm sure you'll have a great time

 

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[smack22]

Thank you for the awesome review! It makes me "almost" want to change our booked Dream cruise. Guess we will have to book another one! [emoji6]

 

 

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