Live from Freedom's 11/19 W. Carib. Thanksgiving Cruise!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Hi AdamKnows,

How awesome is that? We'll stop by there tonight!

 

My dad is the late night pianist in the Schooner lounge on the Freedom. His name is Jim and he is a lot of fun. Please stop by the Schooner lounge and tell him that his son back in Idaho says hello.

Thanks,

 

Adam

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Morning! I was going to post about dinner last night but...the Internet went spazzy and I couldn't get on. Today seems much better. For those of you who asked about prices, the charge to use the Internet is 50 cents a minute (and it goes right on your onboard account); however if you buy packages you can save money (I am paying 33 cents a minute because I bought about 2 1/2 hours of time upfront). WiFi is the same cost, and if you buy minutes using WiFi you can also use them in the cafe above the library.

 

OK so on to dinner...yesterday when Deb and I got onboard we switched our seating to late and asked for a "fun" table. Well, we were seated with nice people -- a couple from Florida (Cruise Critic fans!), their daughter and their daughter's friend -- but our table was in a corner and you could feel some kind of vibrations. The two girls actually left halfway through the meal because of it, but I think it was just the straw that broke the camel's back because they were already seasick. The thing is, they are going to change their table tonight, so I guess we are too. Can you imagine if the two of us show up for formal night and have to sit in the corner at a table for eight people alone (there were also two empty seats)?

 

We'll keep you posted on our game of musical dinner tables, but I have to say despite the location our meal was very good. I even ordered off the healthy menu (a grilled chicken breast with brie cheese)...so that I could have dessert LOL which for me was apple pie. Other items offered for dinner included shrimp ravioli and prime rib; there was an onion tart for an appetizer, a tomato soup and a spinach salad.

 

We finished off the night at Bolero's, the fun Latin lounge that Royal Caribbean has begun installing on its ships and one of my favorite bars at sea period. The two bartenders there were absolutely fantastic -- made a mean mojito and juggled bottles and shakers for us. It felt like "Cocktail" without Tom Cruise. It was quiet, but they assured us the first night usually is because people are tired and settling in. We'll be back....

 

I'm headed to the Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle in 15 minutes, but definitely keep posting your questions and comments because I'll be back later today. We are at sea, so our biggest decision to make today is where to eat lunch! We have also circled a few things on our Compass, from a wine tasting to a scrapbooking workshop.

[CruiseAwayWithMe]

Hey, I'm enjoying reading your posts. I was on Freedom of the Seas in July and I had the onion tart, it was good. :) They finally changed the Meet & Mingle to a good time? Back in July, the Meet & Mingle was at 5 PM on a formal night and many people didn't attend.

 

Well, keep the posts coming, I'm enjoying reading them. Most of all, have a wonderful cruise! Freedom of the Seas is a great ship and the week seems to fly right by for me.

 

The craziest memory of Freedom of the Seas for me is definitley the Flowrider. ;)

[MarinerDeacon]

Melissa....

 

Thanks for the info. How great is this to follow your blogs for ideas for when we sail on the FOS the week of December 10 (I already know that I am going to have the chicken with brie). We have sailed on the Voyager and Mariner but are really looking forward to the "big" one. Our room # will be 7640 with a balcony. I believe this is on the "bump-out".

 

To Adamknows...I will also say "hi" to your Dad in the Scooner lounge the week we sail.

 

Dotty

[AdamKnows]

Thank you all for stopping by to say hello to my dad. It sounds like I will be visiting my dad on the ship after the first of the year and I am more than excited. I hope your cruise is smooth sailing.

 

Adam

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Days at sea go awfully fast, don't they? I had a great time meeting fellow CC'ers at the Meet & Mingle today; about 30 people attended including Big Al, easytravel777 and a few folks who were actually on the Cruise Critic FOTS member cruise just last month! I have to admit this was the first Meet & Mingle I've been to so I wasn't sure what to expect. If anyone is new to cruising or new to Royal Caribbean, I highly recommend it. Go! You will meet some new friends and the activities director gives you the scoop on what shows, etc. are coming up during the week. Plus, there's coffee and donuts J

 

Deb and I did not make the scrapbooking workshop but we did go to the wine tasting at Vintages, Freedom's wine bar on the Promenade; if you've done regular wine tastings in the main dining room, this one is a little different -- much more intimate, just two tables of six. We didn't have to sign up early -- just walked in willing to pay the $15 per-person fee. We got to sample six wines (not full glasses, but a pretty generous amount). Afterward we grabbed something to eat from Sorrento's to soak up all that vino. Laura -- WOW, the case in the front rocks. Today there was pesto-topped bread, grilled eggplant and marinated feta, yum! We also had grilled chicken panini with mozzarella and caramelized onions (each day, there's a different "panini of the day"). All of the eats here are complimentary.

 

Speaking of food, we ended up making reservations for dinner at Portofino tonight because they were already booked up for tomorrow, which was when we were originally planning to go (so a note to those of you sailing soon: make you reservations right away!). It worked out really nice, though we still do need to go change our table before tomorrow night. We got dolled up for formal night, grabbed some bubbly down on the Promenade, and then headed upstairs for three straight hours of food LOL. It was really a nice meal. The fee to eat here, for those who are curious, is $20 per person. It is well worth the money. I had fried calamari (HUGE portion for an app), Caesar salad and veal saltimbocca; Deb had carpaccio, Caesar salad and grilled shrimp over vegetables. We sampled three small portions of each pasta, and also split a dessert sampler -- the tiramisu and flourless chocolate cake are awesome. We had great, very personal service.

 

We have reservations to try the other alternative restaurant, Chops (steak and such), on Friday; also a $20 cover.

 

After that meal it was absolutely impossible to do anything besides come back to the cabin. Adam, we did NOT forget about your dad -- we'll be heading down to the Schooner tomorrow to see Jim the piano man!

 

Tomorrow is Cozumel; we're thinking about just renting a car and exploring the island -- definitely want to check out how the major attractions and beaches are looking after Hurricane Wilma. Hopefully the weather will be nice -- it was really cool and windy today! Once the sun comes out, FlowRider here we come....

 

Oh, and P.S. -- did I mention the new bedding is fantastic?! I slept like a log and I am in my PJ's right now (love Wi-Fi) eyeing my bed.

[Cuizer2]

...ignore duplicate post :D

 

The double post fairy got you too? :)

[AFT_LOVER]

at Sorrento's? He makes your stay there a real treat unless he is on vacation which would be too bad. He also gave us the tour of their partner restaurant Promenade Cafe with the Seattle's Best for sale there. Great sandwiches, salads, oh everything.......... he tells us they pitch food that is over 4 hours old. So that's freshness!

 

Did you visit the Concierge Lounge? Keys were not working on Member Cruise so over 500 very angry people.

[melissa@cruisecritic]

This morning Deb and I got up, had a room service breakfast, then head out to the pier to rent a car. We got a Jeep for $60 for the day. We probably could have found something a little cheaper, but the open-air aspect of the car was cool and we were too tired to haggle. Plus, it was one of the only automatics left, it seemed.

 

For the poster who asked about Chankanaab Park, it is open for business! That was our first stop. The gentleman who rented us the car told us that they just reopened last week, but I saw notes in the guestbook from before that so I'm going to look into the exact date for you. I'll preface my thoughts by saying this was my first time there so I don't have a previous experience to compare today's to. It was $16 to enter; some of the shops in the main entryway are not open or at least were not in the morning (we arrived at 10 a.m. ship time, 9 a.m. Cozumel time). One neat thing is that there's a small exhibit there of before-and-after photographs of all the post-Wilma work they've done.

 

The beachfront area is beautiful and you can tell it has been completely redone -- beach chairs, and cute tables in the waterfront bar and grill. The Dolphin Discovery program is up and running, and we saw quite a few groups getting ready to go into the water. The botanical garden has been redone. There is a lot of work still ongoing, though … yellow tape, wheelbarrows full of debris, some closed off pathways. It looks as though the open-air theater near the dolphin holding area is still closed. All in all, though, we enjoyed going there and I think I'd like to come back for a relaxing day when everything is all finished. I was glad to give them my business and assist in the progress.

 

We spent the rest of the morning driving around the island and checking out the different beaches; all of the major ones (San Francisco, Paradise Beach, Playa Mia) are open and have been pretty much since right after the hurricane I believe. You can see the effects of the storm on the landscape though; many trees are bare, and there are some broken stumps where trees once were.

 

We had lunch downtown at La Mission, which I've been to before and love. Driving and finding parking was a bit of a challenge but hey, I'm from Jersey -- nothing scares me. La Mission is somewhat off the beaten path -- plenty of tourists go there, but it's not on the main drag so it feels a little more authentic, as does the Mexican combo plate (chile relleno, enchilada, quesadilla, etc.) with Dos Equis, of course. Deb and I also split ceviche.

 

 

It was not very crowded on the beaches or at Chankanaab (in the morning); downtown was bustling, though. Six ships called today from what we could see. Freedom was docked at the International Pier. Carnival (I believe Destiny) was anchored further south because the Puerto Maya pier is still closed (car rental desk told us it will probably be another year before that is operating). Norwegian Dream and CostaMagica were docked at the downtown pier, and Radiance of the Seas and another NCL ship we could not identify were anchored out that way.

 

I really like Cozumel aside from the catcalling and hassling from shop owners. Just before we boarded the ship two guys convinced us to come into their shop (we were looking for magnets, anyway). Haggling works -- we got the price from $8 for fishbone handmade magnets down to $4. Before we left, the one employee showed us a rather lewd apron. I can't write about it here in case there are kids reading :) We thought it was funny, but I can imagine some people not having the same sense of humor about it!

 

Phew, I'll stop here! We'll post again this evening about our shipboard activities. It is a casual night and we are going to go to the Crown & Anchor Welcome Back party beforehand. Then: Schooner Bar....

[melissa@cruisecritic]

A (very sweet) woman served us yesterday; we'll look for Johnny!

 

at Sorrento's? He makes your stay there a real treat unless he is on vacation which would be too bad. He also gave us the tour of their partner restaurant Promenade Cafe with the Seattle's Best for sale there. Great sandwiches, salads, oh everything.......... he tells us they pitch food that is over 4 hours old. So that's freshness!

 

Did you visit the Concierge Lounge? Keys were not working on Member Cruise so over 500 very angry people.

[melissa@cruisecritic]

The captain just announced that we won't be calling at GC tomorrow as scheduled, which is SUCH a bummer because I was so looking forward to doing Stingray City -- especially since everyone participated in the poll. The weather conditions are apparently not good, and I have to admit that wind was really, really blowing today. Not condusive to tendering, which we would have had to do tomorrow. To make up for the change (tomorrow we'll be at sea instead), we're staying in Cozumel until 10 p.m.! I think we are going to stay onboard though and get to know Freedom a little more....

[boat123]

can you tell me please, what night the dining room serves the grand mariner souflle. thank you

[vikeqn]

Melissa,

Thanks for the great updates. I actually have friends sailing with you and I am wondering how warm it has been?

My friends have never done the western and were concerned about the temps. Has it been warm?

Thanks!

[lgerrish]

Melissa,

A bunch of us (teachers) are sailing in April to Grand Cayman, Montego Bay and Cozumel. I was so hoping you could share some insight on Stingray City -hope your longer stay in Cozumel was eventful! We're not sure what to do in Montego Bay, so maybe you can shed some light on that port.

Enjoy your cruise!

[Borat]

Have you made it to the Bull & Bear Pub in the promenade at night? between 1030PM - 1AM there is a solo vocalist/guitar player in the pub. Apparently his name is Scott Perham? Can you let me know how he is!? Thanks. Have an amazing cruise, im going back on freedom next month AND January...VERY EXCITED!

 

...also....have you met a bartender named Jesus...or Vineet?

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Hi,

We haven't seen it yet, but I think it is usually the second formal night. Will keep you posted!

 

can you tell me please, what night the dining room serves the grand mariner souflle. thank you

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Well...not quite! We had a nice mild day in Cozumel, in the 70's. However, it has been windy and the seas are rough. We are hoping it will warm up for Montego Bay on Thursday.

 

Melissa,

Thanks for the great updates. I actually have friends sailing with you and I am wondering how warm it has been?

My friends have never done the western and were concerned about the temps. Has it been warm?

Thanks!

[melissa@cruisecritic]

I love B&B! We haven't been there at night yet but Scott is on the Compass as the nightly entertainer. We'll have to swing by and let you know how he is! I have not met Jesus or Vineet -- we are so far partial to Stephen and Chris at Boleros, really fun guys with a lot of personality. They actually performed some bartending flair for tonight's Crown & Anchor Welcome Back party (for repeat cruisers).

 

Have you made it to the Bull & Bear Pub in the promenade at night? between 1030PM - 1AM there is a solo vocalist/guitar player in the pub. Apparently his name is Scott Perham? Can you let me know how he is!? Thanks. Have an amazing cruise, im going back on freedom next month AND January...VERY EXCITED!

 

...also....have you met a bartender named Jesus...or Vineet?

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Adam, guess what…we finally got down to the Schooner tonight, and your dad was on break! Eventually, we will cross paths :)

 

So…we cheated and once again avoided changing our table assignment because the menu at Jade, the free casual option up at the Windjammer buffet, was so appealing we decided to do dinner there instead. We had sushi, sweet and sour chicken, fried rice, the works. It actually felt like a "specialty" restaurant because they had white tablecloths out, shiny black plates with spaces for ginger and wasabi, and the soy sauce and Asian looking plants on the tables. And we talked it over and decided we are not going to change our table assignment. We are going to show up there tomorrow, and if we are alone at the huge table, oh well -- perhaps we'll get additional attention from our wait staff because of it!

 

I saw the Quest for the first time tonight, which was hysterical! Quest is an adult scavenger hunt for those of you who haven't sailed with Royal Caribbean or haven't attended one of the Quests. Teams basically have to run around the room collecting items for points, such as watches, bras, etc. Very funny!

 

The ship is really moving…I do not get seasick but even I had to take off my heels to walk back to the cabin.

 

To the poster who asked about the Concierge Lounge: We haven't even had a chance to head up there yet we've been so busy, I think tomorrow's the day since we have an impromptu day at sea. We'll keep you posted!

[Clare Husted]

Hi Melissa,

Going to ask you question about Cozumel. My husband and I will be in

Cozumel in February and are presently thinking about a trip to Cancun.

Is there a way to do this on our own or through an independent tour

operater? I imagine the ship does provide a shore excusion to Cancun.

Is Paradise Beach on Cozumel a good second choice? We will be on

the Royal Carribean Legend so information will probably be simular.

Can you or any cruise critic members provide me with a independent

operater for Belize. We will on course not attempt anything on our

own their. Not able to do snorkling or climbing just ideas for city tour

or other points of interest.

Thanks! Clare

ClareHusted957@msn.com

[ryanandsara'smom]

Hi Melissa,

Hope you are enjoying your day. If you see Ashley on the sports staff, could you send her a happy thanksgiving wish from Plymouth MA were it all began? Thanks so much!

 

Kim

[melissa@cruisecritic]

Hi Clare,

I'll see what I can find out for you, but keep in mind I am not able to recommend an independent tour I have not experienced personally. Hang tight!

Melissa

 

Hi Melissa,

Going to ask you question about Cozumel. My husband and I will be in

Cozumel in February and are presently thinking about a trip to Cancun.

Is there a way to do this on our own or through an independent tour

operater? I imagine the ship does provide a shore excusion to Cancun.

Is Paradise Beach on Cozumel a good second choice? We will be on

the Royal Carribean Legend so information will probably be simular.

Can you or any cruise critic members provide me with a independent

operater for Belize. We will on course not attempt anything on our

own their. Not able to do snorkling or climbing just ideas for city tour

or other points of interest.

Thanks! Clare

ClareHusted957@msn.com

[zotzer]

If you see Ashley on the sports staff' date=' could you send her a happy thanksgiving wish from Plymouth MA [/quote']

 

Hi Kim!!!

Melissa needs to tell Ash to save some hugs for me too! LOL

Happy Thanksgiving!

T

[Slow Mailman]

Melissa,

I love reading your posts! Have a great time and be sure to go up and get on the Flowrider - it's sorta like a requirement - or maybe I'll just say I double dog dare ya'!

Leland

[Borat]

thanks for the response last night...its great that youre doing this LIVE from the ship. Anyway, dont forget to go to Bull & Bear around 11 or 12 tonight...check out scott perham, let me know how it is in there. Thanks.

-Jordan