Cruising- It's The Way To Go!

Cruising......A Life Changing Experience

2012-01-29T01:20:00.000-05:00

As I look back over the years since my first cruise I realised that cruising has been an important part of my life. From the moment I made my first deposit on my first cruise. I took the brochures that the travel agent gave me and they became my treasures. We had chosen Carnival's Festivale for our first cruise, February 25,1983. We had made the deposits in April of 1982. For nearly a year I read that brochure from cover to cover. The brochure lived on my bedside table. Every night I would look at it before going to sleep. My imagination would go crazy as I imagined how the cruise would be. Finally the day came and I took my suitcase and departed cold snowy New Hampshire for warm sunny Miami Florida.
Since my return from that first and most wonderful cruise I have lived for the next one. Within a week I was booked on the Mardi Gras. Of course the excitement was there again. For the last 29 years that is how it has been for me. Incredible excitement from the moment the deposit was made. Of course cruising was and still is my main subject of conversation. I was always living for the next one. I was always trying to convince my friends to go on a cruise This was through the 80's and into the early years of the 90's
There were years I was unable to cruise at all due to family commitments. That was okay as I always knew I would cruise again when the time was right. In the meantime I took courses in cruise sales. I went to work as an outside agent for an agency in NH. I was so enthusiastic. I did not sell a lot but I did try and it was always fun trying. The years passed and life went on. Eventually in 2002 came the time when cruising could again be a part of my life. I booked the Carnival Spirit for an 8 day cruise from Miami. After that cruise I was researching the next one when I stumbled across a great website full of information and nice helpful people. I joined the forums on that site and "met" some of the most incredible people ever. I eventually went on a group cruise with them.I used to read about the dinners these people, The Central Florida Cruisers had in Florida. I knew that some day I would live in Florida and join the fun.
It had always been my plan to move to Lakeland, Florida in my future.I had lived there when I was young. When I left to go home to my family in Massachusetts I knew I would be back. I knew that I would know when the time was right. Life went on and I sold cruises from time to time and also worked at my job. Eventually the time was right for me to move back to Florida. I made my plans and finally arrived here in Lakeland in June of 2007. Coincidentally Lakeland was near where the Central Florida Cruises were gathering. I am now retired from my full time job. I work my own hours from home selling cruises and vacations.
The fine folks from that large website are now friends. Because of that site and my love for cruising I have met many wonderful people from many places in the US and other countries. I have a small cruising forum of my own filled with great people. Some of them I have met and they are good friends. In the future I hope to meet more of those people from those websites.
So you see cruising for me was more than just a wonderful vacation it was...... A Life Changing Experience.

Booking A Cruise Is Always Exciting!

2011-06-07T08:12:00.001-04:00

When I book a cruise it is always exciting for me. It never gets old or boring. I get just as excited booking a cruise now as I did way back in 1982 when I booked my first one for February of 1983. Back then I used a brochure to choose my cruise from. Now I use the internet. The brochure back then took up residence on my bedside stand. Every night before bed I would look at the brochure and imagine myself on the ship having fun and maybe romance. I always knew how many days until my cruise. Now I have a countdown clock on my signature in various cruise related websites. Now as then I know how many days until my next cruise. Some things never change. When the time comes for the cruise I know I will be at the port way too early just wanting to be there. Just as eager to board as I first was back in 1983. Most important of all I know I will enjoy myself, I always do.

I'm Baaaaaaaaaack!

2011-05-30T04:34:00.000-04:00

After a long hiatus I have decided to resume posting the thoughts on cruising from my wandering mind. I have been on two cruises since the last post. One cruise was on Carnival Liberty in September. I booked it to celebrate my retirement. I was going to keep working my full time job for a while and my part time job was in "on call" status but officially I am retired.......sort of! Three weeks later my phone rings. It was the travel agent that booked my cruise. She was calling me to offer me a job in her travel agency. After determining that my only commute would be from my bed to my kitchen to get coffee and then to my desk, I accepted. So for the last year I have been working on cruise sales and loving it. So here I am "retired" so how come I now have 3 jobs? Huh? Eventually I shed the full time job. I am still at the"on call" job and I enjoy that job. The cruising job is fun and since I love to cruise and my earnings will pay for that addiction. Good deal! The Liberty cruise was fun. I was booked with a friend who was a "no show" so I had a room to myself. I found lots to do on that cruise and had a wonderful time. I did not let the fact that I was alone stop me. I was everywhere on that ship and doing lots of fun things.
For November I was booked on the Sensation. My best friend since high school came from Texas to cruise with me. It was a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas. What fun we had. I hope she chooses to cruise again. The time has come when I must go and get a bit of rest. Soon I will be back to give my thoughts on living a fun life for a person alone. Sleep tight cruisers...let the gentle rocking of the ship of life take you off to dreamland.

Review - Celebrity Infinity

2009-01-30T07:21:00.011-05:00

Infinity- Alaska- 12 days, round trip, San Francisco- review

After not cruising on Celebrity for 2 years, (busy trying other cruise lines) we were anxious to see if they have changed. to our happy surprise for the most part the answer is no. The service and cleanliness is near perfect and we could not have had a more enjoyable cruise. We did find that the meats are not as tender as before, but on the whole everything was wonderful. The shows each night were fabulous. Especially the singers and dancers. They were the most professional group we have seen on any cruiseline. the embarkation was not good, they were not organized and it seemed that they weren't sure on what they were to do with so many people who came earlier than the 1 pm boarding. But we made it thru the masses and finally were aboard one of our most favorite cruises. Alaska is a place not to miss. Even though my husband is disabled he was able to do enough of the tours to really enjoy it as much as the others who were on them with us. We had a problem which could not be fixed, so we notified our TA when arriving home and he got it straightened out and we should be hearing from Celebrity shortly. The problem was a window washing machine stationed outside of our balcony. It made it hard for taking pictures, and as I have noted my husband is disabled and spends a lot of time on the balcony. it also was a concierge room and we were not told that there would be an obstruction to our views of the Alaskan scenery. Our wait staff was some of the best we have had, and knowing that Celebrity does read the comment cards will move our waiter, Vernon Pilliay, to a higher position. His bright smile, personality and always trying to make it the best he could be. Even when we saw him in the buffet area he was always there to help us out. another thing I must compliment Celebrity on is how helpful they were in the buffet area, always someone there to carry my husband's tray for him. He uses a cane and this is the only company that seems to make it a point to help the disabled with this service. Another person I must mention is the asst. Matre D', Cassandra, she was the most enjoyable and quick to respond to any and all questions or problems. When she was told about how our table of 6 were having a hard time cutting our meats, she had the executive chef cooking our dinner meals for the rest of the cruise. Now that's what I call service! She made it a point to visit with every table in her area, when has that ever happened to us..... never. She is definitely going places in the company. The tours were so much fun and informative, and debarking the ship after the cruise that morning was a sad time for us, but went very well. They had things moving along smoothly and had us in a cab for the airport in no time. I would definitely recommend this cruise to anyone who wants to have a relaxing, enjoyable and informative Alaska cruise, especially if you are disabled. Not having to sit in a bus tour for long hours was a pleasure. We made our own flight reservations, and we also booked the hotel that Celebrity had offered, but did it on our own because the cost was much lower doing it ourselves. Tuscan Inn, a Best Western property, was right near Pier 39, where everything comes together for sight seeing San Francisco. It is a lovely smaller hotel with a nice Italian restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Also having a happy hour around the fireplace in the main lobby with free wine, beers, sodas, and orderves. Don't know if this is allowed, but we returned to Scoma's seafood restaurant, a wonderful place to eat on Pier 47. After 5 years they haven't changed one bit, and even the price on the menu was the same. One more thing is to tell you all to join the roll call for your ships, we have met so many wonderful people who have become friends. It just makes the time on the cruise even more enjoyable. Please email me if you want any furture information. Jeanne/Fllady email: fllady13@yahoo.com

Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2009-01-27T06:05:00.005-05:00

My life has been very busy lately. I have worked a lot of overtime on my jobs. Many people wanted to take time off during the holidays. I was called to fill in for them. It has been great for the cruise fund. I have a cruise coming up in December 2009.

Sadly I had to cancel my Panama Canal Cruise for this March. had wanted to go on that but the economy caught up with me. Another opportunity will present itself in the future I am sure.

I have set my sights on another cruise for December 2009. I will be sailing with my cruise friends from Cruise Talk Cafe on Carnival's brand new Carnival Dream. I look forward to this trip. It is a 7 day cruise from Port Canaveral in Florida. We will be visiting ports in the western Caribbean Cozumel, Mexico ; Roatan Island, Honduras ; Belize ; Costa Maya, Mexico. At present this ship is still in Italy being built. She will be brand new when our group sails.

Cruise Talk Cafe continues to grow slowly but very surely. Our members are very friendly people who care about each other. Some of us have met at various dinners held around Florida. We have also met on cruises. I think the Dream cruise will be a lot of fun. Drop in and check us out at www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us . We love to have company and welcome new members.

Cruise Talk Cafe

2008-08-12T04:23:00.001-04:00

Cruise Talk Café

There is a special place I go
It’s a special place to be
All the folks that go there
Love to go to sea

They are very special people
At Cruise Talk Cafe
They care about each other
You see it every day

They are very friendly people
Friends welcome old and new
Come on in to visit
You will be welcome too

They love to go cruising
On ships that sail the sea
They lift a drink at sail away
No place they would rather be

So if you love the big ships
And you love to sail away
Come on in to see us
At Cruise Talk Café
www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us

Laura E Berry

Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2008-07-29T04:27:00.003-04:00

Hello Cruise Friends!! Lots going on in my life these days. My forum group, Cruise Talk Cafe, www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us is planning to go on a group cruise. It is a long way off in December of 2009. We have chosen to cruise on Carnival Dream from Port Canaveral. We chose the Western Itinerary which sound like an interesting trip. Western Caribbean: Port Canaveral (Orlando), FL ; Fun Day At Sea ; Cozumel, Mexico ; Roatan Island, Honduras ; Belize ; Costa Maya, Mexico ; Fun Day At Sea ; Port Canaveral (Orlando), FL This will be our first group since forming the Forum in April of 2008. The members are looking forward to it. Anyone is welcome to join us on this cruise and I will post the pricing here. You need not be a member of Cruise Talk Cafe but you are certainly welcome to join. We are a very friendly group and we welcome new members. Our forum is new and small but we are growing a little at a time. Most of us there have come together from other websites and still proudly belong to other websites. Most of us have met either on group cruises or at dinners in Florida. We are close and caring of one another.

Cruise Talk Cafe: Our Dream Come True Cruise

Carnival Dream - Port Canaveral

12/12/09 7 Night Western Caribbean

Inside 4B-$629

Balcony cabins:

8B-$929

8C-$939

8D-$949

8E-$959

With 5 cabins booked you also get $100 per cabin shipboard credit.

Fuel surcharge of $63 per person is NOT included in the price.

I can price other categories except for 1A, 4A and 8A in groups. These categories can not be booked in groups.

Ocean view cabins can be added at the prevailing rate at time of booking.
As per Carnivals new group rules.

The agent has informed me she will do a $50 per cabin deposit for guarantees.

Nancy S Bogert, MCC

Cruise Planners

If you think you would like to join Cruise Talk Cafe on our first group cruise please contact Nancy.

Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2008-07-19T03:33:00.002-04:00

Excitement in the group grows. Today came some more quotes for the cruise.The quotes came in very close to NB's quotes so I will have to change the poll and let them all vote.When the agent is chosen then I will post the prices here and the agent info. It would be great if others wanted to come along It is everyones cruise and I want to make it fair to all. As hard as I try not everyone is pleased. I sure wish it were easy. What is convenient for one is not for another. Carnival Dream looks to be a really beautiful ship. I cannot wait to be aboard and see what she has for us.
We had some excitement at the CTC website today. The server was down and we could not get in the site. I emailed the support but got no response. I went looking for a new server to set us up. Later in the morning the site was back up and running. I did not have to find us a new home after all.Now everyone is thououghly confused but happy to have our home on the web back up and running. This much I know, when I came on and could not access the site I was sick. I was so afraid that I would not be able to see my friends. We are all so close on that site. Funny how the internet can create such close friendships. It is even nicer now that most of us have met. We can mostly put faces to the names.This much I do know. A day without my friends in Cruise Talk Cafe is like a day without sunshine. Just in case any of you reading this would like to visit the address is www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us We love to have people drop in and visit. Join us and be part of the fun we have there. I guarantee you will all get a great big welcome. We sometimes all meet for dinner somewhere in Florida. RayB does the planning for this and it is a combination of our group and the members of CruiseMates, a very large cruise website. CruiseMates is a huge website filled with great info about cruising. anything you need to know you can find there. the staff and members are all great people. I belong there too and that is where I met most of the people I have in my group at Cruise Talk Cafe. Have a great day everyone.

Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2008-07-15T19:34:00.003-04:00

It has been quite a while since I have been here to write anything. My life has been busy. Working shifts for my part time job and filling in for vacations on the full time job. It seems like I have a lot of hours.
The message forum, Cruise Talk Cafe, that I started in April is coming along just fine.We have a nice group of regulars who come in daily to say hello. The growth has been slow but that is okay. We are little but we are a happy group. Most of us have met either at the dinners that Ray B organises or on cruises we have taken. It feels like family. When we do get a new member this group is quick to say hello and welcome. I am proud of the group for their willingness to make the Cafe a fun place to be. Once in a while someone else comes along and joins. Everyone gets a big welcome to the group. The address is www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us Come on in and say hello. I guarantee you will be welcomed with open arms.

Right now we are working on a group cruise together. We have been looking at Carnival Dream for December 12, 2009. the ship will be taking over the routes from Carnival Glory sailing from Port Canaveral. The itinerary will be Western Caribbean to Western Caribbean: Port Canaveral, FL; Cozumel, Mexico; Roatan Island, Honduras; Belize; Costa Maya, Mexico; Port Canaveral FL. I have been researching pricing for this cruise. Nothing is final as yet. Come over and check it out. You don't have to be a member of Cruise Talk Cafe to sign up for our group. We are looking forward to the cruise. www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us
I have started another project also. I have been working on small website. It consists of links to my favorite cruise related websites. I have also been adding items from my email box. I get a lot of newsletters from agencies with their specials. I post them to the site. I just thought it would be nice to post some specials. You never know when you will find the cruise of your dreams in my tiny website. The address is the following http://sites.google.com/site/cruznutsplace/ drop in and visit.

Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2008-06-04T02:16:00.002-04:00

My next cruise is still way too far off. I do not go until March 2009. I will be sailing on Carnival Pride from Long Beach, Ca to Miami, Fl. It is a 14 day cruise and I am very excited. It is my first Panama Canal crossing. I was at the Panama Canal last October on my Carnival Liberty cruise. Touring one of the locks got me interested in doing a cruise that transits the canal. When I returned home from that cruise I began research to find a Canal cruise. I went in to the Carnival site and was fortunate enough to find this sailing. I have previously sailed on Carnival Pride and loved that ship. What could be better than another cruise on a ship I already know and love?
It will be a long wait until it is time for that cruise. I keep myself busy with work and Cruise Talk Cafe my chat board. The board is populated by my friends that cruise. Drop in a look around. You will find people there that are friendly and love to cruise. We welcome new members and want everyone to feel comfortable when they drop in for a visit. the site address is www.cruznutsplace.iforums.us Most of have met in person either on group cruises or by attending dinners in our local area. Most of us are located in Florida. The dinners are usually attended by us and the members of a large popular cruise website. Most of us belong to both sites. It has been fun getting to know these people with whom I share a love for the ocean and the ships.
Another thing that has kept me busy lately is Freebie Force. I stumbled across this recently. I went to the site and joined up. In going over the site I have been able to pick up many "freebies" some are small sample sizes of products and some are the full size version. A lot of the freebies are in the form of printable coupons. I print coupons and shop with them. In these times with rising prices due to the gas prices it has helped a lot. I have also gotten a free zip drive and Microsoft Accounting 2008 for XP. There are quite a few really nice things that can be had for free or nearly free. So far I have gotten more than enough to warrant the less than $10 a month fee. Every day they add new things. The addresses are www.Cruznut.makemoneywithfreebies.com www.Cruznut.NoCashEver.com If you are interested drop in and take a look around.
Time has been flying by and it has been a year that I have been in Florida. I look back at the days when I packed all my clothes and my kitty, Miss Lilly in to the car and drove away from NH.Driving off to an exciting adventure that has not yet ended. This first year has been an exciting journey for me. I am thrilled to be here and really enjoy the very mild climate. Christmas day I was out on the patio wearing shorts. In my life I have never been able to do that without freezing. Secretly I laughed when I saw the reports of snow in NH and they had the worst winter in a long time. I do not miss the snow and very bitter cold at all. I am glad to be here in the warm sun. Life is good.

Cruise Chat Board - Cruznuts Place

2008-04-23T07:10:00.003-04:00

I have been really lazy about writing in this blog. I will be writing more now. I have been very busy with my jobs and creating a new space. Recently I started a message board. It is not there to sell cruises or compete with similar websites. I simply wanted to create a place for cruise lovers to come and relax. As of now most of the members are from other cruise related websites one of which is soon to be gone. The members have been friends a long time. Most of us have met in person either at dinners around the state of Florida or on group cruises from a very popular cruise related site, CruiseMates. We are all good friends and we care about one another. We welcome anyone that wants to join us at the message board. You would be part of a warm, caring community of people who love to cruise. We talk about cruising and our lives,and families. It is a place where we are comfortable with one another. We are all seasoned cruisers and would be happy to try and answer your cruise questions. We are assembling cruise reviews of ships we have sailed on. I am always trying to add interesting features to the site and welcome suggestions from the members. I extend an invitation to everyone to drop in and visit. Maybe you will like our home on the web enough to sign up. We hope so. the address is cruznutsplace.iforums.us Come on over and join the fun.

Laura

The Ramblings Of A Cruise Addict

2008-02-07T07:02:00.001-05:00

Time is flying by and I have not written in a while. Life is hectic lately. trying to end one job and start a new one. I have been thinking of cruising lately. Recently I booked a cruise for next March. I booked Carnival Pride for a 14 night cruise from Los Angeles to Miami. I had heard that Carnival was going to reposition Carnival Pride. I went to work and found a great deal on it. It will be the longest cruise I have booked so far. I went to Panama last fall when I was cruising on Carnival Liberty. A tour of the locks got me interested in taking a transit cruise. My friend in NH has agreed to go also. I think we will have a great time. Now I think the wait until next March will be unbearable. Currently I am looking at a cruise over Halloween 2008 on Carnival Legend. I am searching for a great price but this time I have the "single supplement" to deal with. Having moved from NH to Florida I save on air at least. I live about 25 miles from the Port of Tampa. I have not booked the Halloween cruise as yet but I think I will very soon.
Another cruise that I have been dreaming of for a very long time is a cruise of the Hawaiian Islands. I was in Hawaii in 1985 and loved it. That was a 10 day land tour that included 3 Islands. Oahu, Maui and Kauai. It was a lovely tour but I felt that 2 days of it were lost in travel from one island to the next. This time I will visit Hawaii on a ship. So convenient and so comfortable. Check in only once and travel in comfort to each island. No ship or itinerary has been chosen yet as it will not be until at least late 2009 or 2010. That seems like such a long way off but the time flies by.
A few weeks ago I attended a dinner at Carrabba's restaurant in Orlando. I had the honor of meeting some of my friends from a cruise related website. We are all friends from the message boards at this website. As yet the website is small but we are working on growing our "population". As a small group we have formed close friendships. Drop in and join the fun. Many of us live in Florida and get together frequently for dinner and a good time. This website had it's first group cruise in September on Carnival Liberty. What a wonderful time that was. I got to meet many Mariners that I had not met before. It was so nice to see the ones that I knew before and to meet the new ones.
Soon I have a birthday coming up. I am not ashamed to admit I am going to be 60. At one time I thought that was soooooooooooooo old!! I do not feel like I am old. I look in the mirror and see the signs of my age. I do little to make myself look younger. Why bother? Aging is natural and we all do it. Never having been a great beauty it is easy to ignore vanity. I am young at heart and try to stay active. When I cruise I find myself choosing at least one adventurous shore excursion. Usually I am the oldest one on the tour. On my last cruise I chose white water rafting and this time I was not the oldest one. I really enjoyed that tour it was one of the best ones I have done. No, I will not be writing about sky diving. I see no reason to step out of a perfectly good air craft.
Moving to Florida has been a positive thing for me. I live a completly different lifestyle. I am much more active and on the go. I think it is the nice weather here. When I was living in NH I wanted to stay inside where it as warm. Even my work seems to be more like fun and less like a job. Of course the best reason to move to Florida is the nearness of the cruise ports. I can go and see the ships any time I want. I can even take advantage of last minute specials. Mmmmm, warm weather and ships..........Does it get any better than this?

Hello Again, It Has Been A While!

2008-01-18T05:16:00.000-05:00

It has been a while since I have found time to post. Life has been hectic for me. I have found a new job and have been preparing to start that. Of course my current job has been keeping me very busy too I have also been looking for a new cruise to go on. and I found one. I just booked Carnival Pride 14 days from Los Angeles to Miami. The bad part is that it is not until March 2009. To help pass the time until then I am thinking of booking a short cruise from Tampa. I have not researched any cruises as yet but I will soon.
Monday night I went to dinner with friends. All of us are members of several websites that promote cruising. we all met through the websites. http://www.themarinerscabin.com/ and http://www.cruisemates.com/ Over the years we have started meeting on cruises or at dinners around Florida. Many friendships have blossomed. The power of the internet never ceases to amaze me. At one of the dinners in Clermont FL we had a couple come all the way from Tacoma Wa. I am not recommending that everyone go and find a website and recklessly go meet new people. We all came together because of our addiction to cruise vacations. We got to know each other through daily postings on the message boards. Eventually we attend a dinner or book a group with these people. I have attended four dinners since moving to Florida and met many wonderful folks . I have also done two group cruises with the members of the websites. What wonderful friends I have made. In an earlier blog I wrote how cruising had changed my life. that is still true today 25 years after my first cruise. It just gets better and better.
In September I went on a cruise with a group sponsored by http://www.themarinerscabin.com/ Most of the people on the cruise I had met before. Some of the people on this cruise I met for the first time. What a wonderful fun filled cruise that was. I am finding that I am more adventurous than I thought I was. I went white water rafting and had a grand time. I would definitely consider that again. I have been researching tours for my Carnival Pride cruise. I find myself leaning toward the adventurous tours. I used to be happy sitting in a bus and listening to a description of the area we are driving through. Not so anymore!! I want some adventure and excitement. It was this cruise that prompted me to book the upcoming Carnival Pride cruise.
One of the stops we made on the Carnival Liberty was Panama. I toured the canal locks. I decided it was time to start looking for a Panama Canal cruise. I also heard that the moon over Panama is beautiful. It did not take a lot of time to locate a cruise once I started searching. I checked out several cruises then I heard about the Carnival Pride cruise. I have sailed on this ship previously and loved it. That decided it for me. A ship I love and an itinerary I have wanted to do for a while. The price was right and my friend wanted to go too so we are booked.
Recently I heard that some of my friends are planning to sail from Tampa over Halloween 2008. this sounds like such a fun cruise I am really considering it. It has also come to my attention that a couple I know from Texas are going too. Good ship, Carnival Legend, good folks equal a good time. I guess it is time to start searching for the right price!.

2007-12-17T02:52:00.000-05:00

Winter Is Here

Recently the news is full of the cold wintery conditions all across the USA. Ice storms and snow storms have wreaked havoc from coast to coast. Mother Nature has cruelly reminded us that winter is here. When I lived in New Hampshire I had a simple way to deal with the weather. I would book a cruise. Usually the cruise was booked long before the cold arrived. I spent countless hours planning what I would do on my winter getaway to warm weather. It was fun to think about. I could be snorkeling in azure blue waters off the coast of Mexico. I could be shopping for a special piece of jewelry in St Thomas. I could be enjoying a Margarita in Cozumel. So many places to go to get out of the cold. On those cold winter days "cruise dreaming" was my favorite pastime. Want to do some "cruise dreaming" of your own? Book a cruise, grab a cup of coffee or cocoa and relax and dream about the fun you will have on your cruise.

With so many itineraries from so many ports, there’s a “Fun Ship®”
cruise vacation that’s perfect for you.While on board enjoy superb
dining, Spa Carnival®, spectacular entertainment, a friendly casino
and much more. Every destination offers its own unique attractions,
shopping opportunities and sightseeing adventures. For the most
fun you can have on vacation, book a Carnival cruise today.
At any one moment there are
a million ways to have fun.

www.lberry.globaltravel.com

2007-11-28T03:21:00.000-05:00

A First From Miami

CARNIVAL FREEDOM

Newest & Largest Mega "Fun Ship"!

CARNIVAL FREEDOM will sail from Miami to our most popular Caribbean destinations. At 110,000 tons, this fantastic floating resort offers an enormous variety of family entertainment areas, including an expanded childrens program, "Camp Carnival", and teen club "Club 02". Call now to book your cruise on the newest Mega "Fun Ship" in the world CARNIVAL FREEDOM.

7 Day Eastern & Western Caribbean Cruises From Miami

Starting Saturday, November 17, 2007

7 Day Western Caribbean Itinerary

Saturday - Miami............Departs 4:00 PM

Sunday -"Fun Day At Sea"

Monday - Cozumel 7:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Tuesday - "Fun Day At Sea"

Wednesday - Grand Cayman 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM

Thursday - Ocho Rios 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Friday - "Fun Day At Sea"

Saturday - Miami 8:00AM

7 Day Eastern Caribbean Itinerary

Saturday - Miami..............Departs 4:00 PM

Sunday - "Fun Day At Sea"

Monday - San Juan 5:00 PM - Midnight

Tuesday - St. Thomas/St. John* - 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Wednesday - St. Maarten - 7:00AM - 5:00 PM

Thursday - "Fun Day At Sea"

Friday - "Fun Day At Sea"

Saturday - Miami - 8:00 AM

*Optional excursion to St. John is available

Call For Rates

Laura Berry

Independent Agent

Global Travel International

www.lberry.globaltravel.com

863-248-6706 Home

863-701-6782 Cell

Cruisers Love To Cook

2007-11-24T12:02:00.000-05:00

Cruisers!! We all know we love to cruise. We tell you that over and over until you want to run away screaming. Sometimes it seems like cruising is the only thing in our lives but that is not true. We have many interests and one of those is cooking. The following are recipes that were submitted to me by my cruising friends at my two favorite cruise related websites. http://www.themarinerscabin.com/ and http://www.cruisemates.com/

read, try them and enjoy!

Laura

Here's one:

1.5 oz Captain Morgan

5 oz Coke

Add ice and mix in a double old-fashioned glass.

Enjoy..........!

Submitted by Dean

Portland Oregon

Lamingtons

2 T butter

2 T cocoa

6 T water, boiling

3/4 lb icing sugar

vanilla essence

coconut sponge

Melt butter and add cocoa and water. Add icing sugar and essence and mix until smooth. Cut sponge into squares, coat with mixture then roll in coconut.

Submitted by Lombard

New Zealand

STUFFED PEPPER SOUP

2 POUNDS OF GROUND BEEF

1 CAN OF TOMATO SAUCE 28 OZ.

1 CAN OF DICED TOMATOES UNDRAINED 28 OZ.

2 CUPS OF LONG GRAIN WHITE RICE 2 CUPS OF CHOPPED GREEN BELL PEPPERS

BEEF STOCK 1 LG CAN 28 oz

¼ CUP PACKED BROWN SUGAR

SALT

PEPPER.

IN A LARGE SAUCEPAN, BROWN THE MEAT AND DRAIN OFF EXCESS GREASE. ADD THE REMANING AND BRING TO A BOIL. REDUCE HEAT AND COVER AND SIMMER FOR ABOUT 30 TO 40 MINUTES OR UNTIL PEPPERS ARE SOFT AND TENDER.. YIELD 10 SERVINGS

Submitted by Darlene (RedWitch)
Pittsburgh

Mississippi Mud Pie!

Ingredients (first layer):

1 cup flour 1 stick butter

1 cup pecans, crushed......leave em out and decrease the butter or substitute!

Dough should be stiff....really stiff!

Directions (first layer) Mix ingredients together. Press into bottom of 9x13 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes Chill.

Ingredients (second layer)
1 8 oz, package cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup sugar
1 cup Cool Whip

Directions Blend ingredients except Cool Whip. Add 1 cup Cool Whip.

Ingredients (third layer)
2 3 oz. pkges instant milk chocolate pudding
3 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Mix ingredients and beat until smooth. Pour over second layer. Top with CoolWhip. Add chocolate shavings from Herseys chocolate bar for garnish. Chill untill ready to serve.

Submitted by
Melody
Baton Rouge LA

Cornbread dressing....it's the Southern Way!

1- 12" skillet of cooked white cornbread, cooled and crumbled
4 cups diced cooked chicken or giblets (I prefer chicken...hate giblets!)
8 boiled egss diced
6 raw eggs
2 c. diced onions &
2 c. diced celery sauteed in one stick of butter chicken broth and turkey drippings
salt
pepper

Mix all of this in a BIG BIG BIG bowl, adding enough turkey drippings and broth to make a soupy mixture. Pour into a BIG disposable aluminum pan and bake at 375 degrees until lightly brown on the top.....about an hour and a half. Usually served with a gravy made with a roux In a dutch oven, combine equal parts oil and flour (about 1 cup or a cup and a half) Stir constantly over medium heat until it is a dark caramel brown. Remove from heat, add 1 c. diced onions and stir until they are wilted (one or two minutes). Add enough water to fill the pot over half full. Add 1 can of chicken broth, 1 cup of diced cooked chicken, 1 diced boiled egg, salt and pepper to taste. Return to a simmer and simmer for about 45 minutes. You can add turkey drippings in place of the broth. I apologize for the EXACT measurements......I don't cook with measuring cups, so I just have to guess!

Submitted by
Melody
Baton Rouge LA

This recipe is diet friendly feel free to substitute more sinful ingredients

Bay Scallops with Whole Wheat Penne Pasta

Ingredients
16 oz cooked bay scallops (if using sea scallops, cut each one into quarters)
12 oz uncooked whole-wheat penne pasta, Prepared according to Package Directions
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp table salt
2 tsp olive oil 2
Tbsp margarine
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 clove garlic clove(s), chopped
1 medium onion(s), Choppred Fine
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
2 Tbsp Old Bay seasoning

Instructions
In a large frying pan, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until onions are soft and slightly brown. Add, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Dust scallops with Old Bay seasoning and add scallops to pan with margarine , lemon juice and remaining Old Bay seasoning. Stir until margerine is melted then simmer for two to three minutes. Pour mixture over prepared pasta and toss. Serve immediately.

Submitted by
Doug
Marmora NJ

The Cynic's Cabbage Roll Filling
Cabbage rolls are a traditional Ukranian favourite.

Here's my take on the filling.

This is a very quick and easy meal. Brown 1.5 lbs ground beef, add steak spices if you wish, and a bit of soy sauce and worcestershire sauce. Cook 2 cups parboiled/converted white rice Sautee 3 regular onions cut into 1/4 inch squares, add a bit of Bovril beef sauce. Combine beef, rice and onions in a large skillet, turn down heat to simmer. Add one can whole tomatoes, a bit of HP sauce and about 3-4 ounces of tomato juice (to taste). mix well and break down the whole tomatoes as much as possible. Serve hot. Garnish with celery. Salt and pepper to taste.
Recipe makes enough for 6.

Submitted by Cruise Cynic
Location
Canada

I normally don't give these recipe out, but I'm willing to share it with my friends here at CruiseMates.

Norm's Especially Seasoned Loaf of Ground Beast

This healthy variation on a classic comfort food never ceases to draw raves from my guests. It is also a very versatile leftover, so I always make more than required for the immediate meal. Serves: Approximately 6.

Ingredients: *

1 Large or Jumbo Egg, or 2 Small or Medium Eggs *
1/4 Tsp. Salt *
1/4 Tsp. Black Pepper *
1/8 Tsp. Ground Mustard *
1/4 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon *
1/4 Tsp. Basil Leaves *
1/2 Tsp. Parsley Flakes *
1 1/2 Lb. Diet (At Least 90%) Lean Ground Beef (Note 1) *
1 Cup Unseasoned (or "Plain") Bread Crumbs *
4 Oz. Tomato Sauce (Hunt's or Similar)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 Deg. F. (Note 2)
2. Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly with hands.
3. Press into loaf, then insert into medium (8" x 3 3/4") loaf pan or disposable loaf tin (E-Z Foil or similar).
4. Bake at 350 Deg. F. for approximately 1 hour (Note 2).
5. Slice to desired thickness and serve. Variations:

* Halving Recipe: Bake in small (approx. 5 1/2" x 3") loaf pan or "mini" disposable loaf tin at 375 Deg. F for apprximately 45 Min. (Note 2).

* Doubling Recipe: Bake in large (approx. 9 1/2" x 5 1/4") loaf pan or large disposable loaf tin at 325 Deg. F for approximately 90 Min. (Note 2).

Serving Suggestions:
* For an entree, serve with baked potato and vegetables.
* For a luncheon, slice thiny and make sandwiches on Italian bread.
* If left over, warm in microwave on "Defrost" setting to desired temperature and serve with a side of pasta and a garden plate for a quick meal.
Notes:

(1) This recipe also works well with ground sirloin, ground buffalo, or ground ostrich meat.

(2) Ovens vary, and may require some adjustment of temperature and baking time to achieve optimal results. When done, the outside should have a light crust and the center should be cooked to medium, or about 160-165 Deg. F as measured by a meat thermometer inserted to the center of the loaf. If the top is too crusted, try cooking for a longer time at a lower temperature.

Norm's Quick Pasta Sauce

This sauce cooks as quickly as the pasta over which it's served. The recipe is easy to quarter or to halve to serve one or two, so there's no need to make extra.
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
* 2 15 Oz. Cans Tomato Sauce (Hunt's or Similar)
* 1/2 Tsp. Basil Leaves
* 2 Tbsp. Parsley Flakes
* 1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon

Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan.
2. Bring to boil on medium heat. Allow to simmer for approximately 5 minutes.
3. Stir thoroughly.
4. Serve over pasta cooked per directions on package.

Serving Suggestions:
* For a quick meal, serve with pasta with Italian sausages cooked on a Forman (or similar) grill and a garden plate. Variations: * For a spicy (Fra Diavolo) sauce, add 1/2 Tsp. of Black Pepper.
* For Goulash, dice four 3/4" slices of Norm's Especially Seasoned Loaf of Ground Beast and add to sauce, then combine with four portions of cooked elbow macaroni and grated cheese to taste. Serve with a garden plate or a salad for a quick meal.

Bon appetit!
Submitted by Norm.
Massachusetts

Italian Sub Soup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
3/4 pound, 3 links, hot or sweet Italian sausage,
split and meat removed from casing. I use hot sausage.
1/4 pound piece stick pepperoni, diced
1 ham steak, diced (about 1/2 to 3/4 pound)
1 green bell pepper, seeded, quartered and sliced
1 medium yellow onion, peeled, quartered and sliced
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
salt and black pepper
6 cups chicken stock
1/2 pound gemelli pasta or other short-cut pasta ( cooked)
3 large cloves garlic, cracked from skin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Place a soup pot or deep sided skillet on the stove top and preheat to medium high heat. Add olive oil, 2 turns of the pan and the sausage. Brown and crumble the sausage, drain off excess fat if necessary then add the ham and pepperoni. Cook meats together 2 minutes then add peppers and onions and cook 2 or 3 minutes more. Add diced tomatoes and season with oregano, salt and pepper. Add chicken stock and bring stoup to a boil. Stir in pasta and cook for 8 minutes. Top with your favorite croutons

This is my family's favorite soup.

Submitted by Darlene
Pittsburgh

Here is a recipe for my Moms Japanese Fruitcake. She made this every Thanksgiving and Christmas. She made her cakes from scratch and used fresh coconut but I cheat a little and use mixes and flake coconut.

Bake 1 Butter cake and 1 Spice cake according to package directions. You will have 4 cake layers.

Filling and topping
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
4 teaspoons flour
1 lemon peeled, seeded and chopped
2 oranges peeled, seeded and chopped
1 pound flaked coconut
1 cup pecan halves
maraschino cherry halves

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, water, flour, lemon and orange. Cook over medium heat until thickened. Stir in coconut and cook for 2 minutes. Allow to cool, and then ice cake alternating a white layer and then spice layer. Alternate pecan halves and maraschino cherries halves around top of cake to form a pinwheel.

My grandmothers Macaroni and Cheese.. This is a staple in my house. If I didn't make it every holiday I think my kids would disown me.

1 package elbo macaroni
2 8oz packages of sharp chedder cheese sliced
2 T flour
1 stick butter
milk..
salt and pepper

Boil your macaroni and drain.
In a frying pan melt your butter and add your flour to make a roux. Add salt and pepper. Then enough milk to make a cream sauce. Let it come to a boil and thicken..add more milk if it is too thick.

Alternate layers starting with macaroni, then cream sauce, then cheese. make at least 2 complete layers ending with cheese.
Bake at whatever temp you are using to cook your other foods with until cheese is melted and starts to brown slightly.

Sloppy Joes ( Joe and Travis's favorite food, lol)

2 pounds ground chuck browned and drained.
Half a bottle of Ketchup
2 Tablespoons of mustard
splash of Worsterchire Sauce
1 small onion chopped fine
1/2 bell pepper chopped fine
Garlic, to taste
2 Tablespoons of sugar
salt and pepper.
1 cup water
Add all ingredients to the pan and let simmer until the water cooks out and the mixture thickens.
Put on hamburger buns. I like pickles on mine. They are so easy and much much better than Manwich.

I didn't know how hard this would be. I really don't measure anything. I just do it, lol. It made me hungry so I am going to go cook dinner now. LOL

Submitted by Linda

Atlanta

Spicy Fresh Country Sausage

3 lbs pork butt

3/4 to 1 lb of pork fat back

1 TLB of red crushed pepper flakes

4 tsp kosher salt2 tsp sugar

2 tsp black pepper

2 tsp dried sage1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp ground cayenne pepper

1/2 cup of water

Put the pork meat and fat through meat grinder using the 1/4 inch plate.In a large bowl mix the ground pork and fat with the spices, squeezing and kneading until everything is nicely blended. Two tsp of fresh minced garlic can be added also. Fry up a small piece to taste. You can add more of the dried spices to adjust to your taste. Fresh sausagewill keep for 3 days in refrigerator and 2 months in the freezer.

Submitted by Linda (Biker Linda)

DeBary FL

BEEF STEW

An old family favorite

2 lbs. stew beef chunks coat with flour and salt brown in 2 tablespoons of shortening/oil.
Add 2 cups hot water
1- 8 ounce can of tomato sauce
2 teaspoons parsley flakes
8-12 whole cloves
medium onion cut up in chunks
large bay leaf
cover and simmer 2 hours
Add whole carrots (cleaned) I use 1 lb. bag

5 potatoes peeled and halved
cook for 1 more hour
remove carrots and potatoes
add more flour if needed and stir to thicken gravy.
serves from 4-8 depending on appetites!

Submitted by

Jeanne

Palm City FL

Katlady's Favorite Portugese recipe

carne vinha d'ailhos (Meat of Wine and Garlic)

4 lbs. of pork butts cut into small pieces ( 1 or 2 inch sq.)

1 cup of White Wine Vinegar

1 cup of red wine (I have used Burgundy, but it will color the meat)

20 cloves of garlic crushed

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes

1 and 1/2 tsp. of kosher, or Hawaiian salt

5 bay leaves.

1 lb linguica sausage (4 links)

Combine pork, white wine vinegar, red wine, garlic, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, and salt. Let this marinate 5 days in the fridge. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. After 5 days use a slotted spoon to remove pork (DO NOT cook in the marinate)and place in baking pan. Cook the Linguica in a Pyrex pan with water halfway up the side. cook both at 400 for 45 mintues. serve with rice or make a sandwich.

Submitted By Sherry (KatLady)

California

Where Is She Now? TSS Festivale

2007-11-24T02:03:00.000-05:00

Last night I was looking at a souvenir from my first cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines TSS Festivale. I sailed on Festivale in February 1983 She was to me at that time the finest ship ever built. I was so impressed with her 38,000 tons. By today's standards she was tiny. Can you imagine? She carried about 1100 passengers and had about the same staff and crew aboard. With all the pleasant memories I began to wonder "Where is she now?" So a quick search brought me a wealth of information on where ships have gone.TSS Festivale began life in 1962 as the Transvaal Castle and later became the S.A.Vaal. She began operating in October 1978 for Carnival as the TSS Festivale. TSS Festivale was sold in 1996 and became the Island Breeze for Premier Cruises. As the Island Breeze she was not a popular ship. She also did a brief stint as the Big Red Boat III. She did not do well and eventually this ship was reposessed by creditors and was sold for scrap.
I remember my first sight of TSS Festivale. We were on the bus bringing us to the Port of Miami from Miami International Airport. As we drove into the port. I sat there looking out the windows searching for that Carnival crescent on the smokestack. In those days Carnival had not yet adopted the gull wing stack that is their signature now. Finally..........There it was! Carnivals red white and blue crescent. I was so excited I burst into tears. No kidding, I was so emotional over that first glimpse of "my ship". I was slightly embarrassed by the tears until I looked around. Others on the bus were sitting there teary eyed too. TSS Festivale is long gone now. She is a fond memory for me. A ship that had many "lives" and brought joy to many people on cruises. I was one of those lucky people.

Introducing..............Carnival Freedom

2007-11-18T04:53:00.000-05:00

Carnival Freedom
Carnival's Newest and Largest Mega "Fun Ship"!

CARNIVAL FREEDOM will sail from Miami to our most popular Caribbean destinations. At 110,000 tons this fantastic floating resort offers an enormous variety of family entertainment areas, including an expanded childrens program,"Camp Carnival", teen club, "Club 02"

Call now to book cruise on the newest Mega "Fun Ship" in the world, the Carnival Freedom.

7 Day Eastern and Western Caribbean Cruises From Miami

Starting Saturday, November 17, 2007

Interior from $579 Ocean View from $799 Balcony from $929

7 Day Eastern Caribbean Itinerary

Saturday - Miami - Depart 4:00 PM
Sunday - "Fun Day at sea"
Monday - San Juan Arrive 5:00PM Depart Midnight
Tuesday - St Thomas/St John* Arrive 8:00AM Depart 6:00PM
Wednesday - St Maarten Arrive 7:00AM Depart 5:00PM
Thursday - "Fun Day" at sea
Friday - "Fun Day" at sea
Saturday - Miami Arrive 8:00AM

7 Day Western Caribbean Itinerary

Saturday - Miami Depart 4:00PM
Sunday - "Fun Day" at sea
Monday - Cozumel Arrive 7:00AM Depart 6:00PM
Tuesday - "Fun Day" at sea
Wednesday - Grand Cayman Arrive 7:30AM Depart 4:30PM
Thursday - Ocho Rios Arrive 8:00AM Depart 3:30PM
Friday - "Fun Day" at sea
Saturday - Miami Arrive 8:00AM

cruise only rate is category 1A Interior, category 6A Ocean View and category 8A Balcony. US Dollars per guest based on double occupancy. Government taxes and fees and optional air transportation are additional for all guests. Some restrictions (including stateroom category availability) apply. Ship's Registry: Panama

www.lberry.globaltravel.com

My Review-Carnival Pride-February 25-March 4 2007

2007-11-10T11:16:00.000-05:00

Carnival Pride
Mexican Riviera
February 25,1007
Laura Berry
"Cruznut"

Embarkation

Embarkation in Long Beach is a mess. We walked over from the Queen Mary to the terminal next door. We were greeted at the door and told to take our luggage across the street to the parking garage. No porters to take it for us. We got there and had to find a porter to take it back across the street to the ship. After checking our luggage we went back to the terminal only to be directed to go out around the building and into the Queen Mary for early check in. This done we were sent back to the terminal to be lined up outside. VIP, Zone 1, Zone 2 and so on. So we stood forever in line.
Finally they started taking us inside VIP, Zone 1, Zone 2 and so on. Once inside we were lined up yet again to wait some more. Finally line by line we were lined up to get our pictures taken, no avoiding this, had to cross the set to get to the stairs to the ship. Pictures done, up we went on to the gangway to wait some more. Finally slowly the line began to move again. Once inside the ship we had our security pictures taken and our cards punched in. Finally after nearly 2 hours of standing in lines we were aboard.

The Ship

The layout of the Spirit Class ships are easy to get around. All of the public rooms are located on decks two and three. It is easy to go from one end to the other on both of these decks.
Carnival Pride is a lovely ship. The central theme is the Renaissance. The atrium has much renaissance art, a lot of nudes. Some found it offensive, I did not. The colors were warm, dark woods, bronze tones with beige and gold.

The Taj Mahal lounge

This is the main show room. This room was light very pretty. Many pinpoint lights along the walls. The stage area was brightly lit.

The Mermaids Grille and the Lido area.

Bronze and blue are the central colors here, the room was comfortable with many tables for passengers to enjoy their meals while looking out at the sea.
The 3 pool areas were spacious, the central pool was for both adults and children. The forward pool was for just adults and the aft pool was for children. I was not impressed with the metal chairs at the pool area tables I found them uncomfortable.
The dining room was 2 levels with table sizes from 2 persons to 8 persons. The decor was light colors with comfortable chairs.

The Casino.

This room was as always smoky. I sure do wish that Carnival would do something about that. I was impressed with the variety of slot machines in here. Many 2 cent, and nickel machines. Most of them had bonus games to play too. I found that I could play for hours for $20.00 on a nickel machine with bonus games. Made it much more fun to hit the combo needed to be eligible for the bonus round. Much more fun than mindlessly pulling the handle and watching the reels spin.

The Cabins.

As is usual on Carnival ships the cabins are larger than most cruise ship cabins. I had a nice ocean view. plenty of room for storage in closets and under beds. There were 2 large drawers under the couch. A large cabinet and plenty of drawer space. We had a refrigerator in our room. There was a safe also which was nice to keep our valuables in.

Food and Service

Excellent is the word here. As always with Carnival they excel at food.. It was good and well presented. No complaints here. Much variety both in the dining room and the Lido buffet . The dining service was excellent also.

Cabin Stewards

The cabin stewards rate an excellent. Our room was always cleaned and comfortable. Our cabin steward was a man with long service with Carnival and does a great job. If you ever get Franklin for your cabin steward consider yourself lucky.

Entertainment

To be honest I was a bit disappointed here. On most Carnival ships I have found the dancers to be very talented. We went only to the first formal night production. It was a show called Vrooooooom. The music was good because I love the "oldies" I felt the dance team here was less than stellar. The male singer kept reaching for the high notes and missing. The best part of this show was the video that played between acts. It was an older "biker" named Wings talking about his trips. We did go to an afternoon show with the comedian and he was funny. We planned to go to a late show to see him do his "adult" comedy, we never made it. Too late for us old gals.

The Ports

Puerto Vallarta

I did not see a lot of this town. We took a tour on the water with snorkeling, kayaking, whale and dolphin watching. The day was windy but nice in the sun. A nice lunch was served onboard the boat. Cold cuts, cole slaw and potato salad and fruits. Complimentary beverages were also served. An enjoyable day that was worth the $79.

Mazatlan

This town was dirty in the downtown areas. Somewhat better in the Golden Zone and the hotels area. We took a City tour that took us to see the cliff divers also. We went shopping in the Golden Zone. After shopping we attended a show that was somewhat interesting. Native Indians doing ritual dancing. They also did an act from high atop a pole and hanging from ropes while the pole rotated. The dancers were slowly lowered to the ground.

Cabo San Lucas

I stayed aboard this day and enjoyed the emptiness of the ship. My friend went ashore. She said the town was nice and clean. She enjoyed her tour, Cabo by land and Sea.

Disembarkation

This was slow of course because of having to clear immigration. The usual waiting for your color to be called seemed endless at the time. Since we were not traveling home until the next day we were in no hurry. It was orderly and seemed to go smoothly. Once off the ship we took a bus to LAX to call a shuttle to our hotel.

My Review - Carnival Liberty

2007-11-05T05:58:00.000-05:00

Recently I sailed on Carnival Liberty from Fort Lauderdale Florida. Carnival Liberty is one of Carnivals Conquest Class.
110,000 tons
952 feet in length
116 feet wide
Passengers: 2,974
Crew: 1,160
Registry: Panama

In my humble opinion this ship is stunning. Her decor is a toned down version Carnivals usually splashy decor. She was elegant in some places and showed signs if whimsey in others. I was fascinated with the light fixtures throughout the ship. The central atrium was topped with a huge chandelier in black wrought iron with hundreds of lights with ever changing colors. The public areas were very comfortable. The lido offered many menu choices from burgers, hot dogs and fries to a full buffet line. All that and Oriental, Deli and Taste of Nations daily. On deck 10 above the lido there was also Fish and chips offering seafood daily. That is not to be missed.

Embarkation, Port Everglades - Confusion reigns outside where you unload your luggage. Cars and shuttles and busses all trying to get a spot to unload. From there it is an easy trip to the parking garage. The walk back to the terminal is easy as the garage is next to it. Embarkation was fairly easy. We got in line and were checked in fairly fast. then we had to clear several checkpoints and of course have our pictures taken. In all it took about 45 minutes from luggage drop off until we were on Lido enjoying lunch.

Food - As always when I have sailed with Carnival I found the food to be very good. I did not go to Harry Winston's Supper Club. talking to those that did I hear it is excellent in food and service. This ship has a seafood station up above the Lido buffet on deck 10. This is not to be missed. The food there was wonderful.

Service - Most service was very good. Our waiter was not experienced and we had some waits for courses at times. Later in the week he was replaced and things improved. Room service was weak also. I ordered and the wrong things were brought and no utensils were with it. when I called back for utensils they never arrived.

Cabin Steward - My cabin was clean and neat all the time. I rarely ever saw the steward at all. There was always fresh ice in my ice bucket.

Entertainment - I went to several shows and really enjoyed them. I found the formal night entertainment to be very enjoyable. Stayed up one night and went to see the adult comedian. He was funny without being disgusting.

Clubs - Since I am not much of a drinker I did not go to many clubs. I did go to the Piano bar and found the pianist to be very good. Stopped in to the disco for a few moments one night and enjoyed that also.

Casino - I spent a fair amount of time there. It had a nice variety of slot machines in denominations from .02 cents to $5.00. As for the tables those in my group that did play them seemed to be enjoying them

Lido Pools - The central pool was nice but very busy most of the time. Most of the pool activities went on in this area. .One thing I did note was that there were no kids in the hot tubs when I was up there.
The aft pool was generally quieter and more relaxing to be there. It had a retractable roof that is nice when it rains.

Activities - With Carnival there is always something to do. So much going on all the time. Bingo games and many passenger participation events. I usually enjoy these as I find people to be very funny. These games are always good for a few laughs. People say and do the darndest things!!

One feature I loved on this ship was the seaside theater. The large screen up on Lido. There was something showing every night. One night there was a Bee Gees concert. I really enjoyed that. I was up there several evenings. During the day it was not used for much except the "Morning Show" which was a talk show by the Cruise director.

Shore Tours - A great variety of shore tours are offered for every port. tours from the very sedate to the very active. We did a white water rafting tour in Costa Rica. I would recommend this to anyone. The company, Rios Tropicales is very good at what they do and I felt safe at all times. Once done on the river you are transported to a place for lunch. A very good lunch of local dishes is served.

Disembarkation - This seemed to go fairly well. there were 3300 passengers on this ship and it took time but it seemed to go fairly smooth. I was off the ship and to my car by 10:00 am .

I would not hesitate to book this ship again. I really enjoyed this trip.

I Love To Go To Sea............You See?

2007-11-02T08:12:00.000-04:00

I love to go to sea you see.
To see what I can see, you see?
And when I go to sea, you see.
I'd love to take you with me. You see?
And when we go to sea, you see.
To see what we can see, you see
We'll have a lot of fun,you see
Would you like to go to sea with me?

Laura E Berry

Suggestions?

2007-10-31T03:40:00.000-04:00

So far I have been writing about my adventures in cruising. I love telling my stories. I do hope that my readers have been enjoying them. I strive in my writings to keep this a fun and interesting place to visit. I have a few ideas running around in my head for future articles. My original plan when I started this was to write stories of my travels and articles about cruising. To write hints and tips to help others with their cruise plans. So readers, if you have ideas as to what you want to see please feel free to tell me about them. Some of the ideas I have are to write about the different ports I have visited.To give cruisers ideas as to what to do and see there. Maybe you want to see articles about beaches at different ports. Maybe you want to see articles about the different tour offerings in different ports. How about questions and answers? If you have a question please ask. I will do my best to answer them for you. This blog is written for your enjoyment. I would like to write what you want to read.

Cruising- It Has Changed My Life

2007-10-30T04:33:00.000-04:00

My first cruise back in 1983 was the vacation of a lifetime. Little did I know that this vacation would make such a huge difference in my life. I returned back to reality and went about my life living in New Hampshire and working in a factory. In a few days my traveling friends called. They wondered if I would be interested in going on a cruise the next year. YES!! YES!! YES!! Then she asked me to do the work of researching and finding a ship for us. Oh yes, perhaps I had other friends that might want to go. That was before I had computer and internet service. I rushed out to the travel agency and brought back a stack of brochures.I spent hours every night after work poring over the brochures.
By this time I had driven all my friends crazy with my endless cruise talk. I invited the original ladies back to my home to discuss the possibilities I had come up with. It was also a chance for the ladies I had already traveled with to meet the other ladies. Suddenly, after being somewhat of a loner I had a social life. As winter became spring and then summer the social whirlwind began. Everyone was planning a gathering so we could discuss the endless details of our up coming cruise. We had settled on The Mardi Gras. We were going to Ocho Rios, Jamaica St Maarten and Cozumel, Mexico. The group had grown from the original 6 to 10. We were never tired of this, the conversarion always turned to cruising. No matter where we were or what we were doing. We planned shopping trips to buy formals and summer clothing. Surprisingly the year went fairly fast and we were sailing again.
From then on it fell to me to research and do the planning. The next year we decided to go go Hawaii. For some reason we did not choose to cruise. We did a 10 day tour. Of course It again fell on me to make the plans. I did so eagerly and soon had a ton of brochures in my home. Again the social whirlwind began and then we were off to Hawaii for another great vacation. The next year the travel agent invited us to go on a group cruise his agency was doing. We decided to do this tour with him. The ship was Home Lines brand new Homeric. We sailed from New York to Bermuda. It was a wonderful 7 day cruise aboard a brand new ship. Bermuda is a gorgeous gem of an island to visit. I was sad when I heard that Home Lines was going out of business. That cruise was wonderful and the service and food were superb. Homeric was sold to Holland America to become the Westerdam. Holland America dry docked her and expanded her size by adding a section to her mid section. A few years ago she was replaced by a brand new Westerdam. I do not know where this ship is now.
For me life went on in NH. I was still working in the factory and still planning trips for myself and friends. I planned a trip in 1989 on Carnivals new ship Celebration. My companions were 2 other ladies I had known for years. the 3 of us had a grand time on this trip. Celebration was brand new at that time. We thought she was huge. By todays standards she of course is not. The next year I was invited by one of my original "cruise buddies" on a cruise on the Celebration. I had enjoyed the Celebration the year before so I did not hesitate to accept the invite. We were a group of 6 by the time we sailed.
Here I was 7 years after my first cruise. I was still enchanted by cruising and still eager to do all the research I could to make the next cruise happen. I went on working in the factory. In the early to mid 90's my Mothers health had failed. I suspended traveling to be with her. The owners of the factory had sold out to one of the major stock holders. They were making life difficult for everyone. I stood the new ownership for about 6 years. One night I decided I had enough of that. After 21 years with this company I left. I had planned to retire from there. Part of the truth was that I longed to try something different. I did, I went to work for a grocery chain. It was work that was very different. Along the way I found an ad for a training school to teach me how to sell cruises. I signed up and took the course. I learned a lot from this agency. I contacted a local agency and went to work with them as an "outside agent" I was doing ok with this and building a modest client base. It was never enough to live on but it was an interesting and fun sideline. In 1997 my Mother had passed away and my life changed drastically. About 18 months after her death I moved away to a larger city. I changed jobs again too. I started wotking with the developmentally disabled. Work that I still love to do. At the time I was not selling cruises. Off and on I worked at cruise sales.
In 2002 I was contacted by a friend who asked if I would like to go on a cruise with her.I accepted. We booked Carnival Spirit for an 8 day cruise from Miami in March of 2003. Shortly after my return from that cruise I discovered a website that is devoted to cruising. I joined and have been an active member since. This website is CruiseMates. CruiseMates website is full of fun and interesting cruise information. It is populated by some very nice people many of whom I have met. Some that I have been on a cruise with. Some of the members of this site meet occasionally for dinner around Florida. I have been to 2 of these dinners and have had a wonderful time both times. Another dinner is coming up very soon. we will be welcoming a member from Amsterdam, Holland. One day on the site there was a posting for an upcoming cruise on Carnival Glory in September of 2005. I decided to go along We sailed out of Port Canaveral. It was so much fun to meet the members of this site.
Early in 2007 I made the decision to move to Florida. Most of my family was gone from New Hampshire. I had family in Florida and decided I wanted to be closer to them. So in June of 2007 I packed my car and drove away from New Hampshire. The trip was ike a small vacation that just eneded in a different place.I found a place to live and a job and have settled in happily. I work again with the developmentally disabled. I also work at home part time selling cruises and travel for an agency in Maitland Florida. Most of my social life centers around the people I have met on the cruising websites.
So from the very beginning cruising has made major changes in my life. I was a factory worker in small town NH. I barely had a social life and just a few friends. I discovered cruising and suddenly I was the "cruise planner". I had a social life with my cruising friends. I was going places and doing things I had never dreamed of. The computer introduced me to a whole new world of cruise people. Now that I live in Florida and I am getting to know many people who are interested in cruising.I just returned from a cruise on Carnival Liberty with some cruise friends. This cruise was a group planned by the people at another cruise site, The Mariners Cabin. For me cruising really is the way to go.

Cruising - Restful or Adventurous?

2007-10-29T02:54:00.000-04:00

We all take a vacation from time to time. We need to get away from our everyday lives to refresh ourselves. Everyone is different some want to take vacations where relaxing is everything. For others action and adventure is everything. I have done both.I have taken cruises where my shore tours consist of nothing more than a simple walk. Sometimes just to stroll through a port and have lunch or a drink is enough. I purchase a few souvenirs take a few pictures and head back to the ship. In that time on the ship when most everyone is gone ashore. I take advantage of the empty hot tubs and just relax. For my last cruise I spent a lot of time researching shore tours. I had months to wait so I read the cruise lines offerings over and over. Something I had always wanted to do was white water rafting. I had never done it because I could never find anyone to go with me. There it was offered in the cruise lines website for my cruise. The place was Limon, Costa Rica. I kept the idea in my head for a while. then one day I asked my group mates what they thought. To my surprise several people said they were planning to do just that. I decided to book this tour. Finally the day came that we were in Limon, Costa Rica. Off we went to find the bus to take us to the white water tour. I was nervous. What if something happened? Suppose I fell off and hit my head on a rock? All these last minute worries were running rampant through my head. We were taken to the place where we boarded a bus to the river. The bus was a rickety old school bus. The road to the river was steep, bumpy and very narrow. On the way down it looked like we were going to slide off the road and crash on the rocks below. Finally we made it to the river. We got our rafting gear, life jacket, helmet and oar. The guides gave us instructions and we boarded the rafts. We paddled when told to and off we went. we hit the first rapids. Water splashing over us. We were all screaming and laughing. When we got to the bottom of the rapids the water was smoother and we paddled some more. We did this through several rapids. Our guide was very experienced in this and I felt comfortable that he would get us there safely. At the end of every rapid the guide had us raise our oars and clap them together and yell "puta rita", that is what it sounded like to me. It was sort of a white water version fo the "high five". After doing this for a while the rafts all went to the side of the river for a rest period. Back on the river we hit the rapids again and were again all screaming and having fun as we rode down the river. I watched as the raft in front of us disappeared down a narrow passage between high rocks. Our guide was taking us toward the same passage. We missed the passage and bounced off a rock. One of our raft mates went over backward and slid off the raft. He came up and grabbed the rope on the side of the raft. Other raft mates held him. The guide came and got him safely back on the raft. He assured us he was alright. Off we went again into the rapids. We did several more rapids and clapped our oars together yelling "puta rita" after each one. Finally we reached the point in the river where we had to end our adventure. We pulled to the side and got out. We made our way to the bus that was waiting for us on the road above the river. The buss took us back to the place where we could change and dry off. There was a nice lunch of local dishes waiting for us. Black beans and rice and a meat dish and a salad. We could purchase beer and alcoholic beverages if we wanted to. Along the trip down the river the photographer took pictures and we could buy a cd of our trip. Later we were transported back to our ship. Everyone I talked to said that they had a great time. All said they would do it again in a heart beat. I have to agree, it was fun and I really had a good time that day. I have to agree with the others. I would also do this again. I highly reccommend this tour. It was fun and energetic. Definately worth the price.

One Of My Favorite Places

2007-10-28T02:34:00.000-04:00

In the course of my day I visit many websites. A lot of those sites are cruise related. One of my favorites is a site called The Mariners Cabin. www.themarinerscabin.com This website is in its infancy and has a small membership. The members communicate daily on the message boards. In the short time this site has been in existence the members have bonded and become friends. Recently we had our first group cruise together. We sailed on Carnival Liberty for a wonderful 8 day cruise. Some of us had met on cruises before and at local dinners around Florida. We all came together at a restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale the night before we sailed. What a joyful evening that was. Meeting for the first time,hugging one another. It was a time for joy and laughter and yes, a few tears. The next day we sailed out of Ft. Lauderdale on our way to Cozumel Mexico, Limon Costa Rica and Colon Panama. We had the most amazing journey. We consider that our first ever group cruise was a smashing success. Already we are making plans for another cruise. Members of the site are voting on cruise lines, itineraries and dates for our next cruise. C'mon over join up and get in on the fun. We usually manage to get good rates on the cruise package along with a few fun and interesting "perks". If you are looking for a friendly website that offers good advice on cruising and friendship then come on over and meet us. Everyone is welcome. You wont find a lot of advertising here, just friendly people waiting to say "Welcome Aboard"