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My Freedom Cruise: Final Two Days at Sea

Written by T.I. Cruiser on September 24, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Due to our change in itinerary we were set to finish up our 8 day Carnival Freedom cruise with back to back days at sea. For some spending the last two days at sea is less than ideal, but this was a welcome change for me since many times I need a post cruise vacation to catch up on all the sleep I miss out on.

These last two days were your typical days at sea (which I love). The days were filled with lounging by the pool watching the games being played and many trips to the buffet. Any weight I gained during this cruise can mostly be attributed to this portion of the trip. I did a lot of relaxing and not much exercising. I did manage to accumulate a few more trivia trophies the last couple of days, almost to the point of being ridiculous. At one point during one of the last pool trivia sessions Steve (cruise director staff) didn’t even bother with his usual routine of building suspense. He just asked us how many we got right and then asked the crowd if anyone could beat that number.

I spent more time in the Casino than normal since I was actually winning a small amount. Although, since I was only playing penny slots my winnings never added up to any appreciable amount but the goal of having was was definitely accomplished.

There were two more feature shows planned for the last two evenings. The first which was a production show was called “Ticket to Ride”. As you can probably guess it was a Beatles tribute show. Once again the performers didn’t disappoint. This particular show also seemed to get the best reaction from the crowd (imagine that from a Beattles tribute). I would be willing to bet there wasn’t a single person in the audience that didn’t have an amazing time.

The very last show of the cruise was the Carnival Legends show. All week Carnival had been holding open auditions where passengers could try out to be one of the legends. This show was a chance for those passengers who won to get up on the big stage to perform in front of everyone. Although none of these performers were professional a couple of them did surprise with one in particular being really good. The others weren’t very good singers but it wasn’t that kind of show. The legends show isn’t a competition just one last chance for passengers to enjoy eachother for one last night.

After the show was over we took one last opportunity to walk around the ship making sure we etched every nook and cranny into our memories. The last night of a cruise is always bittersweet for me. Part of me is saddened due to my cruise coming to an end, while the other part of me is anxious to file away the memories I have made.

My Freedom Cruise – St. Thomas Part 3

Written by T.I. Cruiser on September 16, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Back on the ship in plenty of time to get showered and dressed for dinner, we decided to have a few post-port cocktails. Let me make this clear that I do not bring my own alcohol because I am too cheap to buy booze from the cruise ship. The reason I bring my own alcohol is because its nice to be able to unwind from a day in port by having a couple of glasses of wine while getting ready for dinner. Rest assured Carnival still got plenty of my hard earned cash, I even had a hand cramp as proof.

After dinner the one show we really wanted to see was Jamie Frasier. Jamie was one of the ship’s entertainers that I was unable to categorize. At times he seemed to be part of the actual ship’s staff. He was one of the judges in the mixologists competition which led you to believe he was part of the cruise directors staff. However, he was also one of the feature entertainers onboard the Freedom leading you to think he was a paid entertainer. Also, he apparantly has an album and does shows all over Europe and was adds to the belief of him being “more” than a member of the ships staff. In any case, whatever his official role with Carnival may be, his show was excellent.

Jamie is an accomplished singer in the same mold as Dean Martin and Bobby Darin and does a show dedicated to that time period of music. Throughout the course of the show he sang numerous songs from the time period, interspersed with bits of comedy. While singing is definitely his money-maker he also has an awesome sense of humor which rounds out his act quite well. Throughout the show he also tells stories about how he came to fall in love with that period of music. Although to me the show seemed a bit short it was another hit in a long line of hits on the Carnival Freedom. Sadly, our sailing was going to be his last for a while since he was heading back to England to spend time with his family.

After the show we headed over to karaoke to see who all was auditioning for the “Legends” show. The crowd was pretty roudy tonight. Most likely it had to do with people getting liquored up before getting on stage to audition. You could also tell that people brought more “support” tonight in order to get voted into the show.

Tonight they were casting Frank Sinatra, Ricky Martin, James Brown, Brittany Spears and Gloria Estefan. For the most part the competition was even. However, there was one singer who was far and away the best of the night, she ended up winning the role of Gloria Estefan. There was a bit of a battle for Frank Sinatra as one of the contestants had the vocal chops while the other had more of the “Rat Pack” swagger. I would have went for the swagger but (after what was probably a Carnival record for sing-offs) the crowd went for the vocal prowess. Ricky, James Brown and Brittany were filled by people who ran uncontested or those who lost out on other roles.

After the competition it was time for a stop in the casino as well as the traditional pre-sleepytime slice of pizza. BTW yes I did play bingo earlier and no I did not win, just in case you were wondering.

My Carnival Freedom Cruise – San Juan, Puerto Rico

Written by T.I. Cruiser on September 10, 2009 · Leave a Comment

As part of our re-reconstructed itinerary we would be spending all day Tuesday in San Juan. The ship would arrive at noon and depart at midnight, which I loved. Of all the ports in the Caribbean, San Juan is the one where I feel most at home. I love everything about the city, especially at night. But, first things first which of course means breakfast. There is no better way to prepare your body for a long day in the Caribbean heat than having a good breakfast. So, we did our customary breakfast in the lido. After that we headed out to the deck for a little time in the pool before it was time to watch the ship pull into the dock.

It was pretty cool arriving at noon since everyone was out on the deck to watch us arrive. You could tell the whole ship was eager to see what Puerto Rico had to offer. Personally, I only wanted two things; authentic Puerto Rican food and a fedora.

Shortly after noon there was a mass exodus from the ship. Since we already knew the city fairly well, our day was already mapped out. First we would head into town for some shopping, checking out sights along the way. Have I ever mentioned how much I dislike shopping? I’m okay when I am alone but being with two females was a complete nightmare. We had to go to every store and they tried on countless outfits, it was torture. By the time we got to the Coach and Dooney and Bourke stores I was at my wits end. I left them to browse for items they no intention of buying while I went on a search for could bottles of water. Upon my return I found out they actually did buy a couple of items, so all of my tears weren’t a complete waste.

After the shopping we decided to pick up lunch. One of the places I like to visit while in Puerto Rico is a little place called El Jibarito. I found out about it a few years ago by asking a porter at a hotel where is the best place to find authentic food. I always find its best to ask the opinion of “real people” any time I’m looking for a good meal. It is a little off the beaten path but in my opinion its worth the trip (another place is La Casita Blanca). So, we sat down and had a pitcher of Sangria as an appetizer. Lunch there is pretty good (if you like authentic Puerto Rican food) and really reasonable. I got more food than I could eat (and I can eat alot) for about ten dollars. After scarfing down lunch and loosening my belt, it was time to walk off some of those calories.

: Fort San Cristobal

: Senor Frogs Old San Juan

: San Juan Horse and Carriage

: Carnival Freedom In Old San Juan

We walked over to one of the forts to take some pictures and to see a bit more of the city. After winding our way back down towards the docks, I was allowed (lol) to shop for my fedora. I already knew what I wanted and where I wanted to get it prior to coming so it was a fast trip. On our way back to the ship to drop off our items we decided that on the way back out we’d take a horse and carriage ride through the city.

Quickly, we dropped off our items and freshened up a bit before heading back out. It was starting to get a little late so we immediately went to where the horse and carriage rides were. There were through different tours, one took you through the city and the other took you around the perimeter. There was also a combo tour that combined the two, thats the one we got.

The sun had already set so we knew there weren’t going to be many photo-ops but truthfully I can close my eyes right now and imagine so much of it that lack of pictures wasn’t a concern. I just thought it would be a cool new way to experience Old San Juan. Our drivers name was Jose and our horse Bristol. Jose was extremely funny and Bristol, perfectly obedient. Anyone who has ever been to San Juan can probably imagine how frightening going through that traffic in a carriage can be, obedience is a huge plus. Jose narrated along the way and also stopped for some picture taking opportunities, it was one of the high points of our trip.

After the carriage we wanted decided to stop into Senor Frogs for some snacks and a couple of drinks. It had been a while since I had been there but soon after being seated I realized why I had stayed away for so long. Over-priced food and poor service brought back all sorts of nightmares. I’ll admit when I was younger or cruising by myself I probably would have been one of those people standing on tables dancing but nowadays I just find it annoying. Even still I made the best of the situation by taking pleasure in Catie’s reaction to everything, she was mortified. Since she is only 18 years old she hadn’t been exposed to people acting this way. Her mother and I, thought it was hilarious. If you have never been to a Senor Frogs you probably owe it to yourself to visit one, but eat before you arrive.

After we decided we had seen enough of the Senor Frog’s freak show it was time to head back to the ship. There was going to be dancing and music on the Lido deck that night and we always get nervous about missing the ship when we’ve been drinking. Once we were safely back on board we spent the rest of the night dancing before the traditional pre-sleepytime slice of pizza.