From Canada…to Canada: Discovering Liberty, Eh? – LB 08/24/23 – 09/02/23

[Jax]

12 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

my sisters and I are doing a sister's trip to NYC next month and that sounds like a place we might like.

Consider Angelo’s; it’s located right beside The Late Night with Stephen Colbert on Broadway.  It was so good we ate there twice.  

[Lovetocruise2002]

8 hours ago, Jax said:

Not a bad option for you given the state of the airline industry and you (and your luggage) would be guaranteed to be there the next day. My guys had talked about driving to Texas this year; it’s considerably closer for us than Florida but it would still take 3 days each way so that was a big no from me.  Lol

Wow! Three days each way would be a no for me as well.

From where we are to FLL/MIA, it's about 20 hours. I know a lot of people from here who make that drive yearly for spring break, without stopping. We would never attempt that, but we do think we might be able to handle 10 hours each day, splitting it into a 2 day trip each way. It's not preferable, but right now with airfare, Delta (economy) is sitting at about $913USD per person for a round trip flight to FLL; $1083USD per person to MIA. That is just nuts. And we have 4 people! That, along with my grumpiness towards Delta and Air2Sea right now, is enough to make us at least consider the drive.

[Lovetocruise2002]

8 hours ago, Jax said:

Consider Angelo’s;

Looking that up now...

[Jax]

8 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Looking that up now...

I found these  

[Lovetocruise2002]

Thanks @Jax! I will pass along to my sisters and see what they think. Also, only 5 min walk to the Gershwin Theatre so not bad.

No truffled anything though....

[asquared17]

7 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

No truffled anything though....

boooooooo

[GregD]

It's too bad my cousin is getting married next weekend. We totally would have made a trip to Boston to say hi!!. Have a great time. We loved our 2br suite on Liberty. We never thought the aft superstructure was that much of a big deal. If you are in 9708, Johnny apologizes for the stain in the carpet, and hopefully they go the smell out.......

[GregD]

I forgot to mention, there is a great brew pub in Portland that shouldn't be far from the dock called Gritty McDuff's. They have great food, including poutine. I have a shirt from there that says "The drinking shall continue until morale improves". I'm still trying to find that improved morale.

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, GregD said:

We loved our 2br suite on Liberty. We never thought the aft superstructure was that much of a big deal.

I don't know, I guess having the ATS on Wonder and the GLS on Anthem last year really spoiled me as far as aft views go. Just not feeling the love for those beams in the way. Perhaps I will change my mind though in a few days once I am there.

[Neesa]

3 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

I don't know, I guess having the ATS on Wonder and the GLS on Anthem last year really spoiled me as far as aft views go. Just not feeling the love for those beams in the way. Perhaps I will change my mind though in a few days once I am there.

I think you will! I had that cabin with same scenario on the Adventure, TBH they didn't bother me in the least. It was so spacious and comfortable back there, I failed to see them after a day or two. Enjoy this amazing journey! Following along ......

[melmar02]

Woohoo! We'll be back on Liberty in a 2br on her first sailing out of Ft Lauderdale. 73 days for us. It is the last suite we have on the books for now - going to try connecting balconies. I look forward to following along.!

@GregD I need to go back and read your blog again, we're going to be in 9708 again.

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, melmar02 said:

@GregD I need to go back and read your blog again, we're going to be in 9708 again.

Look for that stain lol

[WannaCruise]

Great to see you back so soon after you previous cruise, and this one with the four of you.  It's not Oasis class, but Liberty is a nice ship and what an amazing itinerary.  Funny enough, when DH and I returned from Navigator last month, we booked the 4 night on Liberty for next summer, which stops in Halifax.  Never been there.  It's funny  as we are travelling to New York to do a Canada cruise.  

Have an amazing cruise.  Looking forward to following along.

PS - Don't blame you for staying right in NYC.  NYC is awesome.

[Lovetocruise2002]

4 hours ago, WannaCruise said:

we booked the 4 night on Liberty for next summer, which stops in Halifax.  

I've been looking at those ones too over the last few years. Oasis was doing those too. But we picked the 9 night since it takes us to so many more places. I don't love the timing of this one. We normally don't travel so close to the end of August (with school starting back up), but this itinerary is only available at certain times so it is what it is.

Navigator is still one of those ships that keep getting away from me. One of these days...

[Lovetocruise2002]

This showed up in my inbox this morning. Don’t remember getting these in past sailings. 

[tonyfsu21]

Liberty is great and the aft views are certainly not deck 17 but they are pretty ok. The ship is showing her age but the crew happened to be better than we expected. NYE was insanity! 

[Lovetocruise2002]

52 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said:

Liberty is great and the aft views are certainly not deck 17 but they are pretty ok. The ship is showing her age but the crew happened to be better than we expected. NYE was insanity! 

What deck was that taken from?

[tonyfsu21]

18 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

What deck was that taken from?

This was deck 10 from what I remember. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

37 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said:

This was deck 10 from what I remember. 

Makes sense. I think the higher you go, the less obstruction. We will be on Deck 8.

[Ampurp85]

I always get those emails about " loyalty has its perks" since I turned diamond. The crazy emails are the ones thar say your name and stuff.

I'm looking for some casino comps for itineraries out of Canada/Boston/NJ.

[OCSC Mike]

8 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I always get those emails about " loyalty has its perks" since I turned diamond.

I never get any e-mails like that on my main account, lol. Something screwed up with their system.

I signed up a backup e-mail account for the general list and that one works though... for getting the useless "sale" e-mails every single day.

[Lovetocruise2002]

23 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

I never get any e-mails like that on my main account, lol. Something screwed up with their system.

I signed up a backup e-mail account for the general list and that one works though... for getting the useless "sale" e-mails every single day.

In the past, I have tried everything to attempt to get promo/loyalty emails from them. I never get them. That is why I was surprised to get this one.

[OCSC Mike]

1 minute ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

In the past, I have tried everything to attempt to get promo/loyalty emails from them. I never get them. That is why I was surprised to get this one.

Maybe I will too. Let you know in like 6 months.

[Lovetocruise2002]

3 days out….

- My clothes/shoes are completely packed. This tasked was trickier than I thought. While I know that weather can change quite a bit, the 14 day outlook for Boston/Portland don’t look great at the moment, so I tried to pack lots of options that can be layered. It is so much easier when just packing for a Caribbean cruise. 

- D17 nothing, although she has compiled a packing list for her clothes. Yes, she makes a packing list for clothes every time. Not sure how many other people out there do this? 

- D15 maybe about 50%? 

- Hubby? Well you all know him by now, 0% packed. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

Another interesting thing from today. I got another email from the suite concierge. She mentioned that we should drop off our luggage at Zone 6 to prioritize it. It has been a few years since we sailed from Cape Liberty but I don’t remember this from before. 

[Neesa]

I make a list! I create a calender labeled with the activities, excursions etc of each day. Then I fixate on a color pallet to mix and match allowing for everything to fit in my back pack and carry on. I label my packing cubes as well. You go D17!!! I love this Great minds....

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, Neesa said:

I make a list! I create a calender labeled with the activities, excursions etc of each day. Then I fixate on a color pallet to mix and match allowing for everything to fit in my back pack and carry on. I label my packing cubes as well. You go D17!!! I love this Great minds....

You do that just for your clothes?!

D17 even has the weather outlook for each day on her list and the top/bottom/dress/shoes to go with each day. 

My only list is for toiletries, which I will tackle tomorrow. Need a list for that because to forget a toiletry/skin care/hair care item would be a catastrophe. I know @asquared17 will understand

Just poked my head into D15’s room. All her clothes for the trip are scattered across her bed. She is in her bean bag chair crocheting. I can’t even….lol

[SweetPea]

2 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Another interesting thing from today. I got another email from the suite concierge. She mentioned that we should drop off our luggage at Zone 6 to prioritize it. It has been a few years since we sailed from Cape Liberty but I don’t remember this from before. 

If we didn't have family plans on the 24th, i would make the 65 mi trip to meet you at ZONE 6 to wish you Bon Voyage! Clearly they are repurposing the Star Class Zone for your cruise. That will be bittersweet, won't it?!

Oh, i can't WAIT to do my obligatory packing post for our Sept cruise. It should be about 2.68 sentences, which will include my mathematical formula for packing undergoodies. I bet you're on the edge of your seats for that one!   

[Robert M]

Just as an FYI the Titanic section of the museum isn't huge but they do have some interesting items, and if you have all 4 people getting tickets there is a discount at the desk.

[Neesa]

9 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

 @asquared17

Just poked my head into D15’s room. All her clothes for the trip are scattered across her bed. She is in her bean bag chair crocheting. I can’t even….lol

@Lovetocruise2002 Yes, just for clothes, toiletries are now pretty simple, I am an Eminence girl myself. If I need anything kiddo has an entire array to choose from. 

Also I love that D15 is crocheting, it calms the mind. Sometimes I forget this world is so different and to calm the mind is a necessity. My kiddo loves this activity, she volunteers at our local library assisting the teaching class, where she learned it and fell in love. She even chose to cancel X Box! She was mesmerized by that MineCraft thing. 

She is working on her big final paper for graduation, she chose to focus on the positives and future of nuclear energy, sometimes she is as her desk in thought with her crocheting in her lap, fingers working. 

I encourage such an amazing skill, she insists it helps her stay focused. I was so happy to read that, good for D15! Those clothes will jump in that suitcase in no time. I'm so excited for this trip!

[WannaCruise]

11 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

- D17 nothing, although she has compiled a packing list for her clothes. Yes, she makes a packing list for clothes every time. Not sure how many other people out there do this? 

 

Absolutely!  I'm a spreadsheet girl from price tracking to excursion to hotels to potential schedule, etc.  And then definitely a page for packing.  It's handy though as I often start with the list from last time and then add or remove accordingly.  You DD sounds very organized.

[Lovetocruise2002]

12 hours ago, SweetPea said:

If we didn't have family plans on the 24th, i would make the 65 mi trip to meet you at ZONE 6 to wish you Bon Voyage!

One of these days we will sail together! Maybe with our favourite TA, and we can all reminisce about the times when we had that not so great TA lol

12 hours ago, SweetPea said:

Clearly they are repurposing the Star Class Zone for your cruise. That will be bittersweet, won't it?!

You know, I have never sailed Star out of Cape Liberty so I did not know that Zone 6 was used for Star. If the banner is there it will be bittersweet.

12 hours ago, SweetPea said:

I bet you're on the edge of your seats for that one!   

Your blogs are hilarious. I cannot wait for more adventures of Batman and SweatPea.

4 hours ago, Robert M said:

and if you have all 4 people getting tickets there is a discount at the desk.

Great tip! Thanks!!

3 hours ago, Neesa said:

I am an Eminence girl myself.

No way! Me too! I have long wondered about the brand and then about 9 months ago, I decided to phase out my long time brand (Dermalogica) and try Eminence. I love it! By far my favourite skin care brand that I have used ever, and I have used many since my teenage years. Now I use exclusively Eminence and I can see a huge difference, and the smell is just amazing! I just wish that they sold more of their products in travel size. Instead, I had to buy a bunch of mini spray bottles and tubs/containers on Amazon to put the products in. I don't like doing that because I always think skin care products keep best in their original containers. Oh well...first world problems.

4 hours ago, Neesa said:

She was mesmerized by that MineCraft thing. 

The more I learn about you and your family, the more I realize that we have a whole lot in common. D15 had a Mine Craft phase too a few years ago. She has since let that go a bit. Crocheting is her thing now. And all 3 of us (the girls and I) are big readers.

4 hours ago, WannaCruise said:

I'm a spreadsheet girl

 Ugh! I am pretty organized, and I love making lists, but I hate spreadsheets. At work, I let my teaching partner do all the spreadsheets, at home, Hubby is the spreadsheet fan out of the two of us.

4 hours ago, WannaCruise said:

You DD sounds very organized.

D17 totally is! We knew she would be ever since she was a toddler and the toys in her room, and on her bed, were always meticulously arranged, always in a certain order and place. D15 on the other hand, no one ventures into her room because, even on a good day, it looks like it was hit by a tornado.

[teddy]

4 hours ago, Neesa said:

@Lovetocruise2002 Yes, just for clothes, toiletries are now pretty simple, I am an Eminence girl myself. If I need anything kiddo has an entire array to choose from. 

Also I love that D15 is crocheting, it calms the mind. Sometimes I forget this world is so different and to calm the mind is a necessity. My kiddo loves this activity, she volunteers at our local library assisting the teaching class, where she learned it and fell in love. She even chose to cancel X Box! She was mesmerized by that MineCraft thing. 

She is working on her big final paper for graduation, she chose to focus on the positives and future of nuclear energy, sometimes she is as her desk in thought with her crocheting in her lap, fingers working. 

I encourage such an amazing skill, she insists it helps her stay focused. I was so happy to read that, good for D15! Those clothes will jump in that suitcase in no time. I'm so excited for this trip!

Our 23 year old has picked up knitting and crocheting from his girlfriend.  He says it helps calm him down when he feels anxious, and as his parents, my wife and I have noticed he's been on a more even keel since he started.....although lately they've been knitting hats for their cats

[Lovetocruise2002]

Boarding Day Information email showed up today. In it was reminders to complete online check-in, stateroom requests, print luggage tags and cruise docs, and port and parking information. 

Here is a copy of the stateroom request form in case anyone is wondering. Pretty standard stuff. One thing I did not know was that you can only fill out that form on the day you receive it. Otherwise, it’s not processed. That’s what it said on the form. 

[asquared17]

16 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

D17 nothing, although she has compiled a packing list for her clothes. Yes, she makes a packing list for clothes every time. Not sure how many other people out there do this? 

[raises hand] every time. EVERY TIME. D17 and i are united!!!

there's the two sided packing list AND the master outfit list, which, ostensibly began so that i did not overpack clothes..... and we all know how well THAT turns out.

[Ampurp85]

I love all the knitting,  I tried to learn as a good technique for mental health but sucked at it, it made me frustrated.

The spreadsheet for packing is amazeballs. I have list and such but not like that.

I am looking forward to this blog .

[melmar02]

Here's the view from one of the 2br gs on 8. I think we were 8714 on this one.

[Lovetocruise2002]

29 minutes ago, melmar02 said:

Here's the view from one of the 2br gs on 8.

Thanks! Will have to take some getting used to.....

[asquared17]

On 8/20/2023 at 8:07 PM, Neesa said:

I create a calender labeled with the activities, excursions etc of each day. Then I fixate on a color pallet to mix and match allowing for everything to fit in my back pack and carry on. I label my packing cubes as well

how did i miss this????

i color code via highlighter (main outfit/shoes/accessories/travel outfitting/third layer/spare outfitting) and then group by day + event. 

but i typically throw caution to the wind as far as arranging a color palette. i like this idea though…. 

i don’t label my packing cubes, but i DID get a new set of them!! 

On 8/20/2023 at 10:03 PM, Lovetocruise2002 said:

My only list is for toiletries, which I will tackle tomorrow. Need a list for that because to forget a toiletry/skin care/hair care item would be a catastrophe. I know @asquared17 will understand

oh i know it well!!

we are taking a trip to mexico in less than two weeks (part of a contest from work for me) and not only did i buy a new (smaller!) suitcase, but i am going to try and pare down my skincare routine as well. this is already going to be a struggle, i can tell. 

also, i got squeezy packs as my new containers for shampoo and conditioner… they are refillable… stay tuned…

now i am also looking forward to @SweetPea and batman’s trip. it’s about time we heard more adventures!!

can’t wait for NYC for you guys, sabrina i love that you’re back together again as a family. you know it warms my heart

ps: i’m with you re: skincare existing best in its original packaging but TSA disagrees with us. ALAS.

[Lovetocruise2002]

I need the rest of my family to read this part of the blog lol. They all think I am organized, meticulous, and major Type A (which I sort of am), but some of you put me to shame with all your colour coded spreadsheets and lists, and outfit planning