LIVE - Freedom of the Seas Transatlantic - Barcelona to Fort Lauderdale - Oct 22-Nov 5

[Newbcruiser1]

 

 

 

 

 

Note the hazy sky again due to the dust/sand from the Sahara!

 

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

 

The hike back to the bus was exhausting in the heat! We could have used the wine then! Haha!

 

Next stop - a pottery maker. We watched two men make ceramic bowls following over 100 different patterns, all of which they know without following anything.

 

 

The flowers on the grounds were beautiful, as were the views!

 

 

 

 

We arrived back at the port after 1pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

I went to the Windjammer for lunch.

 

 

And took a walk around the ship:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[cltnccruisers]

Good to hear you survived your volcano experience. We've cruised several times on RCCL and the one common,disappointing thing st breakfast has been the lack of crispy bacon. How has it been on this trip?

[Newbcruiser1]

Good to hear you survived your volcano experience. We've cruised several times on RCCL and the one common,disappointing thing st breakfast has been the lack of crispy bacon. How has it been on this trip?

 

 

 

I'm not sure how they're cooking the bacon, but it's coming out with several strips stuck side by side. Although there has been a good mix of crispy bacon amongst the soggy pieces - easy to retrieve from the buffet severs! [emoji3]

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

I sat and relaxed poolside for a bit, but it got WAY too hot and there wasn't much shade, so I relocated to the solarium! It was the perfect place to watch people running down the pier towards the ship 20 minutes after the all-aboard time!

 

 

We left a bit late, and the captain's announcement said something about waiting for 2 people and packing their belongings. But some loud guy piped up complaining about the 2 people so I missed whether he said THEY were packing up the people's belongings to leave on the pier for them, or if the people were leaving and were packing their own belongings.

 

Nonetheless I didn't see anyone disembark and I didn't see any luggage on the pier. But soon enough, we were off and doing a 360 degree turn while backing up to get out of the port!

 

 

 

 

I headed down to grab a drink from the diamond lounge. I tried a whisky sour on the advice of a cruise friend! This created quite the uproar at the bar, as the bartender asked the other bartender to make it (apparently he makes them better!), and my fellow passengers were shocked that I was ordering it for myself!

 

 

Unfortunately - I hated it! I'm still staring at the remaining 2/3rds which I don't plan on drinking!

 

The Crown and Anchor Top Tier event is tonight. It seems they are only doing 1, and I am estimating that 75% of passengers onboard are Emerald and above... so that should be interesting! Probably an overcrowded cattle call! [emoji38]Also tonight, dinner in the MDR and the 80's party in Studio B.

 

I will be back later with an update!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[TimeToGetNauti]

Heads up on the 2 passengers. I was watching a periscope from one of tour fellow cruisers Karen. She happened to be scoping and they did say they were packing up the people's rooms. And right after a police car showed up with the 2. So they did make it onboard safely in the end. Lol.

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

Yup as Timetogetnauti said, it turns out the 2 passengers did show up in a police car to much applause and made it back onboard before we left.

 

So the top tier event was surprisingly empty considering there are approximately 2400 platinum and above cruisers here! Their loss! They did a fantastic ice show for us (a combination of high energy figure skating and ice dancing), the "Royal Swedes" band was there, and of course the usual captain, cruise director, etc. There are only around 500 first time on RCI cruisers onboard, and 800ish diamond members. There are 91 pinnacles. I didn't get the remainder of the numbers but clearly there are a lot of experienced RCI cruisers here!

 

 

Dinner in the main dining room tonight was good!

 

 

Breaded shrimp (tiny portion!):

 

 

Cream of Vidalia onion soup:

 

Chicken piccata:

 

 

Strawberry Napoleon (delicious!!!):

 

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

I stopped in at the 80's party but it was nearly empty so I didn't stay.

 

 

Then I sat in Boleros for a while.

 

When I got back to this room, this smart puppy was writing me a note!

 

 

It seems that we will now have 6 time changes back in a row! I can't wait!

 

My room is super cold suddenly, as are parts of the ship, so I cranked up the thermostat and headed out to warmer ground and grabbed a cup of tea from the Promenade cafe. Will head back soon and hope it has warmed up a little!

 

That's all for tonight! Coming up tomorrow, the first of 7 days at sea! As per the captain, "word on the street is that we'll have rain on Tuesday and Wednesday". So I will try to make the most of the 80 degree and sunny weather tomorrow. There is a Cruise Critic lunch tomorrow which was organized by the ship and tweaked by some roll call members. There will be a separate section for those who have booked the Symphony Transatlantic next fall, so I will be sitting in that section!

 

Stay tuned to find out just what people do on 7 sea days in a row! [emoji6]

 

 

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[RM]

Can you tell me who the Captain is and do you know if he is getting off soon?

[cruiselover04]

Loving your review. Great photos once again. Looks as if they’ve tweaked the menu at dinner time since our Eastbound TA in April. Like the idea of having buffet breakfast and lunch in dining with the other deck a la carte.

 

Enjoy your sea days!

 

Jenni

[Signet]

Enjoy the rest of your cruise,

 

 

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[tb4]

Following along. Your photo's are awesome

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

Can you tell me who the Captain is and do you know if he is getting off soon?

 

 

 

The captain is Espen Been. See below for details. Sorry, I don't know how long he's been on or when he's due to leave.

 

 

 

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[Palmetto Pilot]

7 days at sea sounds heavenly! I want to do a TA so bad.

[RM]

Thanks for the Officer information.

[klass2]

Hi Jen! Your review is great. And so many of your photos are breathtaking.

 

I love seeing posts from other people of the same cruise I am on. It’s fun to see a different perspective.

 

See you soon!

 

 

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[cltnccruisers]

I sat and relaxed poolside for a bit, but it got WAY too hot and there wasn't much shade, so I relocated to the solarium! It was the perfect place to watch people running down the pier towards the ship 20 minutes after the all-aboard time!

 

 

We left a bit late, and the captain's announcement said something about waiting for 2 people and packing their belongings. But some loud guy piped up complaining about the 2 people so I missed whether he said THEY were packing up the people's belongings to leave on the pier for them, or if the people were leaving and were packing their own belongings.

 

Nonetheless I didn't see anyone disembark and I didn't see any luggage on the pier. But soon enough, we were off and doing a 360 degree turn while backing up to get out of the port!

 

 

 

 

I headed down to grab a drink from the diamond lounge. I tried a whisky sour on the advice of a cruise friend! This created quite the uproar at the bar, as the bartender asked the other bartender to make it (apparently he makes them better!), and my fellow passengers were shocked that I was ordering it for myself!

 

 

Unfortunately - I hated it! I'm still staring at the remaining 2/3rds which I don't plan on drinking!

 

The Crown and Anchor Top Tier event is tonight. It seems they are only doing 1, and I am estimating that 75% of passengers onboard are Emerald and above... so that should be interesting! Probably an overcrowded cattle call! [emoji38]Also tonight, dinner in the MDR and the 80's party in Studio B.

 

I will be back later with an update!

 

Doesn't look like any whiskey sour I've ever had. Do they not have a Bartender's Guide?

[AntsInMyPants79]

Can't wait to hear about the 80s party.

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

Can't wait to hear about the 80s party.

 

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Not much to report - it was almost empty! See post 159 for a picture!

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

My apologies - I have been unable to post anything from today as the internet has been painfully spotty and slow all day! :( I will post as soon as it's back up and running, but I expect it may not work well until the end of the week as we get closer to satellites!

 

 

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[AntsInMyPants79]

No need for apologies! You're kind of a hero around here ;)

 

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[lazydayz]

Thanks for sharing your cruise with us. Sounds lovely so far.

[Baowen]

Thank you for sharing your cruise and food porn with us!

 

I am cruising next week on the Navigator TA solo! My first time cruising by myself - You've inspired me !!

[Newbcruiser1]

The internet wasn't working all day but here it is now! Not sure how long it will last but let's see how far I can get!

 

Yesterday was day 8, and the first of 7 sea days crossing the Atlantic!

 

 

 

 

 

I slept in until around 10am, and went outside to find somewhat gloomy skies but calm seas!

 

 

I enjoyed an iced chai latte and a cookie for breakfast on the Promenade deck.

 

The cruise line arranged for a cruise critic lunch yesterday in collaboration with some cruise critic members. It took place on deck 5 of the main dining room, away from the regular lunch on deck 3. They had tables on one side for those booked on next year's Symphony TA (myself included), and the remainder of CC members on the other side.

 

 

 

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