Carnival Freedom 2017 7-Day Caribbean Cruise Review
Day 2 July 9, 2017 Day At Sea
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Day 2 July 9, 2017 Day At Sea
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Early Morning (Pre-Breakfast) Long Walk Around The Ship:
My morning began around 6:20am when my alarm went off. Since I had slept well the night before, I was full of energy and ready for a full day at sea. I quickly got dressed, checked the time breakfast was scheduled to begin, and left my stateroom to go walk around the ship. At this time of the morning the public areas of the ship were mostly empty. I walked down from Deck 6 to the Promenade Deck (5).
My morning began around 6:20am when my alarm went off. Since I had slept well the night before, I was full of energy and ready for a full day at sea. I quickly got dressed, checked the time breakfast was scheduled to begin, and left my stateroom to go walk around the ship. At this time of the morning the public areas of the ship were mostly empty. I walked down from Deck 6 to the Promenade Deck (5).
Deck 5 - Right By The Atrium & Jewelry Shops
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Looking Down At The Atrium's Bottom From Deck 5
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Looking Up The Atrium - From Deck 5
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Located near the atrium part of the Promenade Deck (5) is Cherry On Top. Cherry On Top serves a variety of candies, sweets, cakes, and other specialty items that can be purchased. There are many things available for sale in this shop that are great for special occasions. At this time of the morning, Cherry On Top was still closed, but I took pictures of the shop from the outside glass.
Entrance To Cherry On Top
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Looking Inside Cherry On Top
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Looking Inside Cherry On Top
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The Promenade Deck contains many of the ship's public areas. The official name of the Promenade Deck on the Carnival Freedom is Centuries Boulevard. Centuries Boulevard contains the ship's casino, casino bar, the Taste Bar, entrance to the 70's Disco, Alchemy Bar, Scott's Piano Bar, International Lounge, and a few other places. The Carnival Freedom's Internet Cafe is located on Centuries Boulevard around the middle of the Promenade Deck. If you see the specialty coffee bar and Future Cruise & Loyalty Desk the Internet Cafe is located directly in front of this.
Centuries BLVD Promenade Walkway
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Promenade Stage - Located By The Casino Bar
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Casino Bar
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The Carnival Freedom is one of Carnival's ships that has received the Red Frog Pub. The Red Frog Pub was a popular place when it was opened. At the front of the bar, guests will find typical bar-stool seats and around the back area of the bar is some tables. In addition, the back of the bar has game tables and stacks of board games.
Approaching The Internet Cafe & Coffee Bar
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Entrance To The Red Frog Pub
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Red Frog Pub - Area Right As You Enter
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Bar Area In The Red Frog Pub
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Areas To Sit Near The Back Of The Pub
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Gametables & Board Games
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Very Back Of The Red Frog Pub
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Mini Stage Area In The Red Frog Pub
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Bar Counter
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The Carnival Freedom's arcade, known as "The Warehouse", is also located along the Promenade Deck (5). The arcade games cost extra. There are a variety of different arcade games located in the Carnival Freedom's arcade.
Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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Arcade Games In "The Warehouse"
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The Carnival Freedom's Alchemy Bar is located near the back of the Promenade Deck (5). This feature was installed during one of the Carnival Freedom's previous dry-docks and is a part of Carnival's Fun Ship 2.0 initiative. The Alchemy Bar mainly serves cocktails that are customized by the individual guest.
Approaching The Alchemy Bar
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Alchemy Bar
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Alchemy Bar
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As I continued to walk towards the back of the Promenade Deck, I found Scott's Piano Bar. The piano bar was mainly used for singing in the evenings. Several bar-stools were available right by the piano and throughout the small lounge were tables, chairs, and booths.
Scott's Piano Bar
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Scott's Piano Bar
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Piano Bar Counter
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At the very back of the Promenade Deck (5) is the International Lounge. The International Lounge is the Carnival Freedom's aft lounge and is mainly used for karaoke and comedy.
International Lounge - View Of The Stage
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Looking At The Seats Throughout The Lounge
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Bar Counter Area In The International Lounge
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After walking throughout all of the Promenade Deck (5) I walked down one deck to the Atlantic Deck (4). One of the first places I walked through was the Habana Bar. I did not see this area get used during the cruise for anything, except for a wedding reception on the first day.
Habana Lounge Dance Floor
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Seating Areas In The Habana Lounge
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Bar Counter
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Between the Habana Bar and Club 02 lounge on Deck 4 is a single stairwell that goes up to the Promenade Deck (5). I do not understand why Carnival decided to put a random stairwell, but it is convenient for those that need to go quickly between Decks 4 & 5. This stairwell must improve the layout of the ship because Carnival's Dream class (Dream, Magic, and Breeze) vessels also have the single stairwell that goes between Decks 4 & 5 too.
Stairwell Up To Deck 5
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Chic Dining Room - Deck 3 Level
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Chic Dining Room - Deck 3 Level
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The final stop on my morning walk was the Lobby Deck (3) of the atrium. The atrium's Deck 3 level is home to Guest Services, the Shore Excursions Desk, atrium bar, and several areas to sit.
Atrium Lobby Bar
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Deck 3 Level Of The Atrium
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Looking At The Doors That Go Outside
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Shore Excursions Desk
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Guest Services Desk
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Carnival Freedom's Atrium
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On the Lobby Deck (3) in the atrium are doors on each side of the ship that lead to the outside. Both sides of this deck have an outside deck area. One side was used as a smoking area (I cannot remember which side). I opened the doors to step outside to see if I could see the sunrise. After waiting a few minutes for my camera lenses to unfog, I managed to get a good picture of the sunrise.
Deck 3 Outside Area
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Deck 3 Outside Area
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Sunrise
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Since it was nearing breakfast time, I decided to go from the Lobby Deck (3) to the Lido Deck (9). Due to my morning laziness, I took the elevator instead of the stairs to the Lido Deck. For those that don't know, normally I take the stairs to get in a little exercise when I am cruising. The Lido Deck was not yet crowded. There were several deck chairs available, but later in the day most of the area surrounding the pools would be crowded. Unlike the first day, the Lido main pool was operational and available for guests to enjoy.
Lido Main Pool Area
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One Of the Ship's Hottubs
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Main Pool - Would Open Later In The Day
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Red Frog Rum Bar
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Blue Iguana Tequila Bar
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View Of The Sunrise From Deck 10
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First Breakfast On The Carnival Freedom:
Today was my first breakfast on the Carnival Freedom. The Carnival Freedom offers cruisers multiple breakfast options to choose from. For cruisers that wanted to eat at the Freedom Restaurant (lido buffet) , breakfast was scheduled to begin at 7:30am and end at 10:30am. Continental breakfast (pastries, juices, and fruits) opened at 6:30am. Late Risers Breakfast was scheduled for 10:30am - 12:00pm in the Freedom Restaurant. For cruisers that did not want to eat breakfast in Lido buffet, Sea Day Brunch was available in the Posh Restaurant (aft main dining room) from 8:30am - 1:00pm.
My first stop at the breakfast buffet was the omelet station. The Carnival Freedom had an omelet station located in the Deli area and the Mongolian Wok area. I alternated between using the omelet station at the Mongolian Wok and Deli. On this day of the cruise I visited the Mongolian Wok omelet station. My omelet tasted good, but looked like a stuffed blob because it was filled with vegetables. Here are some pictures of the breakfast buffet lines at the Freedom Restaurant:
Today was my first breakfast on the Carnival Freedom. The Carnival Freedom offers cruisers multiple breakfast options to choose from. For cruisers that wanted to eat at the Freedom Restaurant (lido buffet) , breakfast was scheduled to begin at 7:30am and end at 10:30am. Continental breakfast (pastries, juices, and fruits) opened at 6:30am. Late Risers Breakfast was scheduled for 10:30am - 12:00pm in the Freedom Restaurant. For cruisers that did not want to eat breakfast in Lido buffet, Sea Day Brunch was available in the Posh Restaurant (aft main dining room) from 8:30am - 1:00pm.
My first stop at the breakfast buffet was the omelet station. The Carnival Freedom had an omelet station located in the Deli area and the Mongolian Wok area. I alternated between using the omelet station at the Mongolian Wok and Deli. On this day of the cruise I visited the Mongolian Wok omelet station. My omelet tasted good, but looked like a stuffed blob because it was filled with vegetables. Here are some pictures of the breakfast buffet lines at the Freedom Restaurant:
Continental Breakfast - Pastries
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Continental Breakfast - Pastries
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Continental Breakfast - Pastries
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Continental Breakfast - Pastries
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Continental Breakfast - Cereals
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Continental Breakfast - Meats & Cheeses
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Continental Breakfast - Fruits
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Continental Breakfast - Fruits
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Continental Breakfast - Pastries
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Main Breakfast Buffet Line - Assorted Foods
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Main Breakfast Buffet Line - Assorted Foods
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Main Breakfast Buffet Line - Assorted Foods
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After Breakfast Walk Around The Ship's Outside Decks:
I wanted to keep walking around the ship to see as much as possible before the public areas got crowded. My walk began the very back of the Lido Deck (9). I walked by the aft pool and Pizzeria. The Carnival Freedom's pizzeria is located at the very back of the Lido Deck (9). Like all Carnival ships, the Carnival Freedom's Pizzeria was open 24 hours a day throughout the cruise.
I wanted to keep walking around the ship to see as much as possible before the public areas got crowded. My walk began the very back of the Lido Deck (9). I walked by the aft pool and Pizzeria. The Carnival Freedom's pizzeria is located at the very back of the Lido Deck (9). Like all Carnival ships, the Carnival Freedom's Pizzeria was open 24 hours a day throughout the cruise.
Pizzeria - Located Near the AFT Pool
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AFT Pool Bar Area
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View Of The AFT Pool From Deck 10
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I went up one deck to Deck 10. I started at the back of Deck 10 and headed towards the deck's front. As I walked I went by the Lido main pool as well as the waterslide's landing and a secondary pool area.
Blue Waters of the Gulf of Mexico
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Main Pool Area - View From Deck 10
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Deck 10 Hottub & Waterslide Landing
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Deck 10's front area is one of my favorites because I am able to look down the sides of the ship. While there were no deck chairs located out here, this area is nice for those that want a good view and to be outside for a little while.
View Of The Ship's Side From Deck 10
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Looking Down At The Ship's Front
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Deck 10 Front Area
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After enjoying the view from Deck 10, I made my way up to Deck 14. The waterslide was not yet open. Some people had already claimed deck chairs and were enjoying the nice sunny day. People were reminded to put sunscreen on through a midday PA announcement (can't remember who made the announcement).
Looking Towards The Back Of The Ship
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Waterslide
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Waterslide's Entrance - View From Deck 14
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Live Morning Show With Malcolm:
At 9:30am in the Victoriana Theater was our cruise director's morning show. On this day of the morning show ports of call were discussed as well as some of the events that were going to be taking place on the ship. I stayed for almost the entire show, but I wanted to get to a trivia on-time so I left a few minutes early.
Morning Trivia Games
Times: 9:30AM - Morning Trivia 10:00AM - Slogans Trivia 10:30AM - General Knowledge Trivia
All three of these trivia games were scheduled in the Swingtime Jazz Club, which is located at the very back of the Promenade Deck (5). Since I was at the morning show I did not go to the 9:30AM Morning Trivia. However, I did attend the 10:00AM Slogans Trivia and did awful. I stayed in the Swingtime Jazz Club for the 10:30AM General Knowledge trivia, but no entertainment staff members showed up to host the trivia. After waiting over 15 minutes for someone to come, we left because others were leaving too.
After being out and about for nearly the entire morning, I headed back to my stateroom. Our stateroom steward had come by and left us a new towel animal. He made the beds up and cleaned the stateroom (as well as bathroom). It was nearly lunch-time, so I headed up to the Lido Deck (9).
As I got in line for food, I saw the Carnival Valor was passing by us in the Gulf of Mexico. I got out of line and went to take pictures. Exactly two weeks prior on this day, I was on the Carnival Valor sailing back to Galveston and the Carnival Freedom passed us by in the Gulf of Mexico.
At 9:30am in the Victoriana Theater was our cruise director's morning show. On this day of the morning show ports of call were discussed as well as some of the events that were going to be taking place on the ship. I stayed for almost the entire show, but I wanted to get to a trivia on-time so I left a few minutes early.
Morning Trivia Games
Times: 9:30AM - Morning Trivia 10:00AM - Slogans Trivia 10:30AM - General Knowledge Trivia
All three of these trivia games were scheduled in the Swingtime Jazz Club, which is located at the very back of the Promenade Deck (5). Since I was at the morning show I did not go to the 9:30AM Morning Trivia. However, I did attend the 10:00AM Slogans Trivia and did awful. I stayed in the Swingtime Jazz Club for the 10:30AM General Knowledge trivia, but no entertainment staff members showed up to host the trivia. After waiting over 15 minutes for someone to come, we left because others were leaving too.
After being out and about for nearly the entire morning, I headed back to my stateroom. Our stateroom steward had come by and left us a new towel animal. He made the beds up and cleaned the stateroom (as well as bathroom). It was nearly lunch-time, so I headed up to the Lido Deck (9).
As I got in line for food, I saw the Carnival Valor was passing by us in the Gulf of Mexico. I got out of line and went to take pictures. Exactly two weeks prior on this day, I was on the Carnival Valor sailing back to Galveston and the Carnival Freedom passed us by in the Gulf of Mexico.
Towel Animal - Elephant
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Waves At The Back Of The Ship - View From Deck 10
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Carnival Valor Passing Us By
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Second Day's Lunch:
Today I decided I wanted to try the Carnival Freedom's Pizzeria. The first time I got in line at the pizzeria it took nearly 15 minutes. Right after I got my pizza and walked away, I dropped my pizza on the floor. The second time I went back the line was not as long, but I also decided to get a Caesar salad too. The pizza and salad were both good. For dessert I had a piece of key lime pie. This is my favorite dessert on Carnival's Lido Buffet. It always seems to be served on the cruise's second day.
The Chef's Choice buffet line was serving American food on this day of the cruise. Other choices at the Lido buffet included the Mongolian Wok, Deli, Comfort Kitchen, Pizzeria, Guy's Burger Joint, Blue Iguana Cantina, and the dessert station. The Seafood Shack and Sushi At Sea were open, but both of these places are not free.
Today I decided I wanted to try the Carnival Freedom's Pizzeria. The first time I got in line at the pizzeria it took nearly 15 minutes. Right after I got my pizza and walked away, I dropped my pizza on the floor. The second time I went back the line was not as long, but I also decided to get a Caesar salad too. The pizza and salad were both good. For dessert I had a piece of key lime pie. This is my favorite dessert on Carnival's Lido Buffet. It always seems to be served on the cruise's second day.
The Chef's Choice buffet line was serving American food on this day of the cruise. Other choices at the Lido buffet included the Mongolian Wok, Deli, Comfort Kitchen, Pizzeria, Guy's Burger Joint, Blue Iguana Cantina, and the dessert station. The Seafood Shack and Sushi At Sea were open, but both of these places are not free.
Pepperoni Pizza
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Caesar Salad From The Pizzeria
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Dessert Station - Key Lime Pie!
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Dessert Station
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Dessert Station
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Dessert Station
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Dessert Station
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Dessert Station
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Dessert Station
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After lunch I walked around more. The Carnival Freedom's gift shops were open. I try to collect a model ship each time I cruise and since I had not cruised on the Carnival Freedom before I made sure to buy one on this cruise. The gift shop had a wide variety of different Carnival logo items.
Victoriana Theater - View From Deck 5
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Carnival Logo Item Merchandise
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Fun Shops - Destination Specific Merchandise
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I walked to the back of Deck 4 to go see the Posh Dining Room. The Posh Dining Room is the ship's aft dining room. Like the Chic Dining Room, the Posh Dining Room has two levels (Decks 3 & 4). Here are a few pictures of the Posh Dining Room:
Posh Dining Room - Deck 4 Level
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Posh Dining Room - Looking Down At The Deck 3 Level
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Back Tables On The Posh's Deck 4 Level
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American Feast Sign Outside The Chic Dining Room
Formal Night's Dinner In The Chic Dining Room:
Tonight was our cruise's first of two formal nights. This meant cruisers were expected to dress nicer for the dining room. There is a dress code, but I am not going to elaborate on the dress code because I do not have the list of non-allowed clothing items.
Due to the large amount of cruisers expected to eat in the dining room, the Chic Dining Room opened its doors at 5:30pm for Your-Time Dining. We asked for a table that would accommodate 11 people. The food and service were once again very good! We had a different set of waiters and waitresses on this night. They did a great job and we had them again several times throughout the rest of the cruise. Since we were celebrating birthdays on this cruise, one of my family members purchased two cakes from Carnival. We asked the dining room to serve these cakes to use after dinner. They sang before the cake was served and made the occasion very nice!
Below you will find a few menu pictures. Since I did not see the dessert menu from this night of the cruise, I did not get a picture of it.
Click on any picture to make it larger!
Tonight was our cruise's first of two formal nights. This meant cruisers were expected to dress nicer for the dining room. There is a dress code, but I am not going to elaborate on the dress code because I do not have the list of non-allowed clothing items.
Due to the large amount of cruisers expected to eat in the dining room, the Chic Dining Room opened its doors at 5:30pm for Your-Time Dining. We asked for a table that would accommodate 11 people. The food and service were once again very good! We had a different set of waiters and waitresses on this night. They did a great job and we had them again several times throughout the rest of the cruise. Since we were celebrating birthdays on this cruise, one of my family members purchased two cakes from Carnival. We asked the dining room to serve these cakes to use after dinner. They sang before the cake was served and made the occasion very nice!
Below you will find a few menu pictures. Since I did not see the dessert menu from this night of the cruise, I did not get a picture of it.
Click on any picture to make it larger!
Appetizer Menu
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Entrees Menu
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From The Grill Menu & Steakhouse Selections Menu
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Bread Basket
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Appetizer - Shrimp Cocktail
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Appetizer - Fried Oysters
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Appetizer - Mushroom Cream Soup
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Appetizer - Caesar Salad
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Main Course - Slow Cooked Prime Rib
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Main Course -
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Main Course - Lobster (With Side Baked Potato)
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Main Course -
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The slice of cake I had was extremely good! I really enjoyed the chocolate inside part of the cake. As I write this review, I wish I had a piece of this cake again! Here are some pictures of the cakes purchased from Carnival:
Chocolate Cake #1
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Chocolate Cake #2
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My Piece Of The Chocolate Cake
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Sunset - View From Deck 3
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Looking Out From Deck 3
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Sunset - View From Deck 3
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88 Keys Stage
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Production Show - "88 Keys"
Tonight was the first major production show of the cruise. The shows were scheduled at 8:15pm and 10:15pm. However, 30 minutes before each production show began a pre-show. The pre-shows for 88 Keys began at 7:45pm and 9:45pm. Our 88 Keys pre-show consisted of the piano bar's entertainer singing several songs. Since the pre-show was interactive, many people sang along and it looked like everyone was enjoying the pre-show entertainment. Right around 8:15pm, the production show began. The show consisted of a variety of music that had some kind of ties to a piano. I recognized several of the songs. This was the first time I had watched a Playlist Productions show. I really enjoyed this show! The singers and dancers did a great job and were extremely talented! |
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