At Sea, Vancouver, HOME!

(Sorry I'm late posting this...) Since our day today was at sea, we slept in and went to breakfast late.  The ship scheduled several presentations including the one we especially wanted to see: the Galley Tour.  I couldn't help but think of our friend Wes who is in the food service industry.  A half-hour presentation introduced us to the head chef, Eric, the Maitre d Hotel, Luigi, and the Head Pastry Chef.  They cooked two Entrees and one dessert in a light hearted fun way.  Chef Eric licked his fingers and the spoon the whole time, just to be cheeky.  The entire room was filled with passengers.  Then they took us through the Galley itself.  Whoa.  The entire thing was covered in stainless steel, with the exception of the skid proof floor tile.  Two separate pairs of escalators help the staff move the food up from the prep area to the serving area. There were multiple freezers and coolers each one for a specific purpose: fish only, meat, salads... One separate area downstairs was just for washing pots n pans. The dishes were wash on the upper floor.  A section for desserts, one for breads and pastries, it was all unfathomable.  They rattled off some of the statistics:  they serve 10,000 meals and use 30, 000 eggs and 26 gallons of dish washing soap  PER DAY.  It,s hard to imagine the coordination effort involved. One thing I did notice is that, like I mentioned, the portion sizes are just right.  I'm sure they've studied the food eaten and discarded and made the portions accordingly. There's really no use for leftovers.  Though we have a small refrig in our room, there's no microwave.  We usually ate breakfast at the buffet.  Anything you need or want is available, not just at breakfast but anytime.  No one will be surprised that I hit the Ice cream stand a few times, but again, the portions are just right.  We see our new friend, Trevor and he give us the food report...four ice cream cones, a shake, three pieces of pizza...and that was before dinner. Rick asks him if he had breakfast...Oh yeah, he forgot about breakfast.   He would stop by our table at dinner every night if we were in the dining room just to say hello.  Sweet kid. I told his Grandma that I'll bet he's going places. She said, "yeah but I hope it's the right places!" Speaking of dinner, it's our last night in the dining room with Carlos.  He is his usual charming self.  We decide to give him nice tip as a group and he appears truly touched.  The waiters paraded out of the kitchen carrying Baked Alaska.  Our table was last to eat our desserts and half of the Baked Alaska was left. Trevor walked by and asked Carlos if he can have the leftovers.  "Sure!" and away he goes with the dessert! Back at our room I'm too stuffed to move but need to pack our things for departure in the morning.  We must set our luggage in the hall by 10 PM and be ready to leave by 8AM.   Rick heard that Princess' disembark system is pretty efficient and that what we found.  We gathered in the theater by color coded group and shortly after called to exit.  We didn't touch our luggage until we arrived  at the airport & checked in.  As sad as we are to see our great vacation end, we're all ready to be home.  We're reminded win Vancouver that we're in Canada.  Odd as it seems, we don't have Canadian dollars and if we do present US dollars, we will get change in Canadian. Kinda hard when all the cash I have is my mad money $100.... DEBIT CARD!  Our connection in Dallas landed on time but we were late leaving for Chicago, putting us in at 12:30am, Chicago time. Luckily, we thought ahead and made reservations at an airport hotel. I looked at the clock when my head hit the pillow: 2:00am.  We met our buds at 9am in the lobby. We find out that Rick got the last hotel room and our friends each got a combo meeting room with a small Murphy bed. So sorry :(. They did get a free breakfast out of it, though.  We realize that we are no longer on the full service cruise ship. CARLOS!! WE MISS YOU!!   Thanks for cruising with us!

Ketchikan

We're kind of sad for this to be our final tour stop.  Once again we're told that the weather today is exceptional. Blue skies and sunshine followed us to this port.   Ketchikan is another quaint city on the Southeastern Alaska coast.  Even though it's pretty geared toward tourists, logging and wood pulp production industries keep the city busy year round.  We watched the ship pull in to port which is a production in itself.  As we're docking, we're also dodging airplanes.  The best way to get to Ketchikan, besides cruise ship is by float plane. The planes land and take off parallel to ship docks from both the water and the land runways.  Our friends rush off to an awaiting airplane for a 40 minute flight to see bears. Although it sounds fun, Rick and I decided to just take it easy today, walking around town.  When we visited Ketchikan before, Mark and I went zip lining so I didn't see much of the town.  Rick and I head down the street of shops, stopping in a few of them, though each shop seems to be stocked by the same supplier.  T-shirts, sweatshirts, shot glasses, pens, Ulu knives, every moose & bear-joke-covered-gear imaginable.  Every other store sells jewelry. I stopped in a couple of them just to look and felt like fresh meat!  The cruise lines own many of the stores, so I imagine they control the prices.   We walked down by the docks and up to Creek Street, a famous red-light district from days gone by.  The boardwalk follows the creek, stairs up the hill past some pretty run-down buildings with graffiti.  Why did we come here again?  Back down the hill, we stop at a bridge where locals fish for salmon. We see them swarming in the water. It is near the end of their spawning season when they swim up the creek, spawn, then die.  Lovely smell... We stop to eat lunch a place on the dock that serves fish, crab and salmon.  We stand in line and order, then eat near the windows watching the local fishing charters pull in and dock.  Halibut sandwich and Halibut tacos. We keep tailing about our favorite excursions, favorite meal, favorite place. The grilled halibut tacos are high on my list.   We head back to the ship, stopping at a few stores.  The temperature keeps climbing and by the time we re-board the ship, we're in shirt sleeves ready to sit on our balcony in the sun, watching the planes land on the water.  One of them had to be our friends returning from the bear excursion.  Soon they return and begin to tell their bear tales.  I cannot relay all their funny stories but apparently the bears were almost too close for comfort.  From their plane, they needed to hike a half mile down a bear-poo-covered trail.  At that point, I understand that Cary was giving Ellen the: "what have you gotten us into??"stare.  I think they had to time their outhouse visits with the bears wandering through.  I'm not sure if our friends were in any danger, but the bears were totally absorbed in their salmon buffet.  I think their pilot was trying to rattle them by flying low over the mountains. It sounds like a fun trip, but we had a nice quiet day anyway. Reservations for dinner at the Cajun Steakhouse. Our food was decent but we missed the service of Carlos in the dining room.  Jambalaya, blackened meat and chorizo were the spicer entrees.   After dinner in the theatre, the ships' performers put on a wonderful music show with a New Orleans theme. They really attract some great talent...Are you listening, Hannah??  Performing on a cruise ship might be kinda fun! Tomorrow, a day at sea on our way to Vancouver, then home. G'night y'all!

Juneau

We arrive in Juneau shortly before we're due to meet our tour guide. We hurry to the dock, and find Harv and Marv's van waiting for us.  The goal today is to see WHALES.  We chose this tour company based on their reputation. Gotta love the Internet: you can get information on AN-Y-THING.   The cruise line offers a whale watching tour but it's on a large boat full of 150(?) people. With Harv n Marv, the boats hold only 12. We meet our captain at the dock and he informs us that the 'head' onboard is liquids only...no TP, no... Anyway...I'm not sure how long it took but we just shoved off and cruised into the bay when our captain Shawn says, "look!  See the water spout from the blow hole?!". Oh man. About seven humpback whales circled around the bay.  They resurface to take a breath about three times, then they FLUKE, arching their back, diving deeper to show us their tail. Blake, our First Mate is a Marine Biology major at U of Alaska, Juneau, and grew up in Berrien Springs, MI!  His grandpa has ND football Season tickets.  Small world.  He's full of all sorts of info on what we're seeing.  We're scheduled for a 3 hour trip but see our fill of whale tails within the first hour.  Capt Shawn also takes us to an island where Stellar Sea Lions hang out.  He says they can be aggressive and their cute, cuddly bodies are deceptive. They can reach 1800 lbs!  I know I don't want to mess with them!   We head back to the dock and see one more whale tail. These whales are incredible. Our guides tell us that their tails are wider than the beam (width) of the boat we're on!  It's easy to lose perspective until you see them up close.  Rick snapped lots of good pix.  The whales can be identified by the color of the underside of their tails and their shape.  Rick got several shots but one in particular clearly identifies one called AK.  Cool!  Our guide asked us not to be specific if the next tour group waiting on the dock asked about our trip.  Apparently people get a little grumpy if they don't see many whales.  He tells us that our weather (overcast yet 60's) and number of whale sightings are highly unusual.  Once again we are grateful for a good tour.  On the way back we stop at yet another glacier, Mendenhall.  I remember this place from our last trip here because it was the first time I'd ever seen a glacier. It's one of the prettiest and most interesting that we've seen. The overcast skies cause the blue-green color to seem deeper and richer.  I don't think this color appears anywhere else in nature, with the exception of maybe the water in the Bahamas.  Back to the cruise ship, Rick and I chat with our shuttle driver.  She and her husband are from Georgia and this is their second summer up here working for Harv n Marv. They came here on a tour and joked about wanting to work here and Harv n Marv hired them, pretty much on the spot. Guess you need to be careful what you say.  They drive up each summer in April with their fifth wheel, stay in it all summer, then drive back to Georgia in late September. They're staying at an RV park with full hookups in Juneau. The bad news is that you can only reach Juneau by water and air, so they have to ferry their rig from Skagway (about $1200 each way). We decide it wouldn't be too much fun having to work every day, including Saturday n Sunday. Ugh.  Back toward the ship, we have tickets for (another) salmon bake.  Bus ride to the outdoor facility, it's all you can eat salmon, beans, salad, corn bread, potatoes, cake...  Good hearty food. Another colorful character plays the guitar and sings while we eat.  A small fire ring off to the side is available for roasting marshmallows and , of course, that's my dessert!  Poor Cary, she's been blasted this whole trip by fish & seafood, which she really doesn't like but has been a good sport for those of us who do.  We're trying to eat our fill!  so far our favorite is the Copper River Salmon...but it's hard to choose.  We board the ship in plenty of time for a NAP!  We've been too busy to fit vacation nap time into our schedule. Cool!  Tonight is lobster night in the dining room so we don't want to miss THAT!  Carlos our waiter greets us and As always, recommends his favorite dishes. Last night when we couldn't decide which dessert, he brought several for us to try.  Chocolate-peanut butter or white nectarine ice cream, creme brûlée...so tonight we again couldn't decide. Carlos brings us samples of the tiramisu, mango, and banana ice cream to make sure we get to try them all.  One of the things I love about cruising is that most meals are included.  You can try everything on the menu if you wish.  The portions are not oversized but just right.  The first week of our trip, our meals were not included.  Now we can eat nearly whatever and whenever we want. After dinner we went to the casino.  Rick and I are not really gamblers but went for the fun of it. I put $20 in the machine to play video poker.  Cheap entertainment.  Tonight we are on our way to Ketchikan, our last port.  Wow the time has gone fast!

Skagway

We woke this morning in port in Skagway. Rick arranged several of our tours not through the cruise line but through private vendors.  On our previous cruise we followed this same route so we wanted to see some different sites and revisit some of our favorites.   He had some trouble getting reservations but we later found out it's because the cruise traffic has increased in this area. Our tour was to begin today with "Klondike Kevin" but we couldn't find him at first. When we did, we find yet another younger "free spirit' guy.  Kevin first tells us that he didn't get his proper tour license and cannot charge us for our trip but he will take us anyway. Priced at over $100 per person, we think, "oh great, this is going to be a bust!"  We stop by his mom's house (she's also a tour guide) to get our deposit so he can refund it to us. HMMM.  We then go to the train station to purchase our return train tickets. We have to show our passports because we will cross into Canada and back.  Skagway mainly survives today only because of tourism. In the 1890's Gold Rush, it was one of two gateways to the source of the gold.   It's one of very few places in Southeast Alaska that are accessible by land.  The railroad, at one time was necessary for travel but today it allows tourists to get a glimpse of the past and the grueling path taken by gold seekers.  Kevin's tour van was decent, but we noticed a certain ripe smell.  Rick says that Kevin needs to clean his van.  We later figure out that it's not the van that smells.  Okay then... His tour narration started out pretty shaky but improved as the day went on.  He drove us part of the way up the Klondike highway which goes North all the way to Whitehorse, Yukon, about 100 miles.  Whitehorse is the 'big city' with Walmart, Home Depot, etc.. And where the locals go to stock up. I figure it's like us going to Lafayette to shop.  Kevin stops along the highway for photos and the scenery is breathtaking. The overcast skies at the beginning of our tour turn to blue as the day progresses.  Kevin's stories reveal to us that he too is an interesting character.  He tells of his adventures which include delivering a sailboat from Alaska to Beirut, Lebanon down the west coast of the US, through the Panama Canal.  He enjoyed life in the Middle East, so he stayed for a few years. Much of his family lives in Skagway, so he returned to live here. He just bought 5 acres in the area and plans to build a cabin there.  So far all he has is an outhouse and a portion of an old building that he bought and put in storage.  Thing here don't move quickly.   And we are reminded that many people in Alaska don't shower daily, but they do get to wake up every day  in this paradise.  About noon we stopped in Carcross, Yukon (Canada).  A cute little town on the shore of a lake, Carcross has two churches, (one Anglican) several shops and lots of houses that we would call cabins. On the corner, two people are selling burgers and hot dogs out of what looks like a garden shed.  Of course we HAD to try it, bison burgers, caribou sausage, chips and drinks.  Rick and I notice many RVs pulling into town which all had an orange sticker. It was an RV tour group, mostly class A and some fifth wheels.  One vehicle, a van pulling a small utility trailer, brings up the rear for mechanical problems, flat tires, etc.  Later in the day, we saw the same RVs parked at a campground in Skagway when we were reboarding the ship. Rick and I think this would be lots of fun and not much different, yet on a smaller scale, to our group RV trips!  It would be a big time commitment, taking about 2 weeks just to reach Alaska.  Guess we have to wait until Janet retires. (hi SIS!!) Back in the tour van, Kevin takes us to our last stops.  Carcross Desert, is a desert area with sand dunes and few trees.  Wind blows off the nearby lake in the winter revealing a huge sand bar. The sand blows off the lake and across the highway. I'm thinking the weather's brutal here.  Off to our turnaround spot, Kevin shows us Emerald Lake, a beautiful green (duh) lake with very few houses.  From the road we can see the bottom. Wow. Makes Tippe look like a mud puddle.  We start the trek back down the Klondike Highway headed for Fraser, where we board the train.  We make one rest stop along the highway where a man has built a viewing platform and 3 moveable timber structures.  Also, a cable suspension bridge stretches across the gorge. Surprisingly both Terry and Rick cross the bridge!  Good job boys, face your fears!  Kevin takes us to the train station and waits for us to leave before he drives away.  While we wait, someone spots a big black bear across the road eating berries. Funny when we TRY to find wildlife along the road, no luck.  But sitting still we can see that critters are everywhere, we just need to be patient.  The train ride is familiar to Weases and us but Schlotterbacks get to see the scary drop offs, great scenery and history of this place. I realize it's sort of a touristy place but these are views that money can't buy, well, only with a train ticket.  Back in the town of Skagway is where we see the touristy (crap) inside some pretty fabulous historical buildings.  Rick and I take the wrong turn walking back to the ship so we were really beat by the time we got  back.  Off to Juneau tomorrow. 

At Sea & Glacier Bay

Two days on the ship, we spend the time orienting ourselves and then viewing some glaciers by water.  First up was Hubbard Glacier.  In the morning before we reached Hubbard, A naturalist hired by the cruise line gave a presentation.  She grew up in Alaska in the 50's where her father was a preacher.  After her presentation, she told us where to stand (10th floor at the front of the ship) to get the best view.   Though the sun was shining it was COLD.  We're glad we brought plenty of clothes to layer plus gloves and hats.   Again, as we approach the glacier, chunks ice float nearby.  As the glacier meets the water, the chunks "calve" or fall off the glacier  Though we're 6-8 miles away, it seems much closer and the cold wind blew in our faces making it feel like December instead of August.  Once again we see the blue green color with black to grey-brown streaks. (Glaciers hardly ever appear white like snow.)   As they grind through mountain passes, they polish and grind the rock of the mountain, pushing along by gravity.  The ship then turned slowly from side to side, giving great views from the balconies.   Day two at sea, we headed toward Glacier Bay National Park.  As its name suggests, it's home to many glaciers of varying types and sizes.  It took several hours to reach our destination and we watched from our room's balcony searching for wildlife along the way.  We returned to our viewing spot but this time it was much warmer.  At the head of the bay we see two glacier that look very different.  The Marjorie is a 250 ft tall glacier that starts 75 miles away in steep slopes.  It's framed by green and grey granite sloes on each side.   Like the Hubbard, it is white and blue-green with streaks of black.  Tothe right of the Marjorie, a lower glacier lays but it has a much different look.  It approaches the water from a much more shallow slope.  This glacier is covered in the grey-black silt and rock. It almost doesn't even look like ice but more like a partially-thawed pile of snow and gravel in a Lowe's parking lot in February!  We definitely got our fill of beautiful scenery.   Dinner reservations were at the on-board Italian restaurant. Every meal  has been outstanding and this one was too.  Our waiter from the main dining room came and visited us to make sure we were being taken care of.  Cary ordered the sea bass entree but apparently it was enough for 2 people.  So we had to help her eat it, of course.  Nearly everything we've ordered is perfectly prepared and yummy. Up early tomorrow...we will wake up in port in Skagway. 

Setting Sail

The train trip to Whittier was a delightful change from the busses.  The panoramic views from the domed cars and the freedom to move around  made the time pass quickly. Each of the seven cars were served by a Rail Guide and a Waiter. Our rail guide Helen, easily in her 80's, gave us highlights along the route and told us stories of her life here. She shares an apartment  in Anchorage in the summer and winters with her family in Idaho.  What a woman. She told us that paragliding off a mountain was on her bucket list and that she'd checked it off recently. She described how thrilling it was and that she didn't tell her family about it until it was over! (Granny, who does that sound like??  Can't wait until you are back running around in your convertible.  XO)  Our waitress, Winnie, was not much younger, sassy and efficient.  She delivered our lunch orders perfectly and only got rattled, or should I say irritated, when we changed seats. Both women performed their jobs with enthusiasm.   The only glitch in the train trip came at the end when the train route took us through 8 minutes of tunnel which caused the claustrophobic among us to panic a bit. No sweat.  You just go to your happy place and before you know it you're sitting at the dock beside a beautiful cruise ship.  Both the best and worst parts of this trip are the people. We've met some amazing, fun individuals and some self-absorbed, negative ones. We seem to gravitate to the former.  Life is too short to be anything but grateful...The mandatory muster (safety) drill, which can be mundane, takes on a new meaning since the cruise ship disaster this past year.  NO ONE joked or laughed, including the three jokesters in our group.  This morning we listened to a presentation by a naturalist about the glaciers we'll be seeing.  Another fascinating woman, she lived in Alaska as a child and wrote several books about her life.  When we reached the Hubbard Glacier about 4pm, she gave a narrative over the PA system describing what we saw. Windy and chilly but sunny, we're told how fortunate we are to see the glacier at all because often fog sets in preventing it.  She also told us that seeing Mt. McKinley yesterday makes us the only one-in-three visitors who get to see it.  I'm trying to pace myself with the plentiful food onboard.  It's hard when there's so much available. The good news is that fruits and veggies are just as common. I figure if I behave, I can hit the Ice Cream Bar occasionally. Mmm... Soft serve with sprinkles!  Tonite was formal night and though our guys wore sport coats , there were some men in tuxedos including our little 11 yr old friend Trevor.  The kid has charisma.  He stopped by our table shook Rick's hand and winked at the ladies. Oh my.  Time for bed. G'night!

Fairbanks-Denali

Fairbanks-Denali Sorry for the time delay...Just got on the ship so I'll be better at posting :/. Up early in Fairbanks to board the bus to Denali. We met for breakfast in the hotel restaurant.  The service at the Fairbanks Princess Hotel was less than impressive. I think everyone is laid back and unhurried like in the South.  It's a whole different pace there.  On the bus with Dallas our driver, he immediately started telling jokes. This varied from Stan, our other driver, whose stories were a little dry and lengthy.  One section of the trip, about 100 miles, he TALKED. THE. WHOLE. TIME. At the halfway point between Fairbanks and Denali we passed a little road house called "Skinny Dick's Halfway Inn".   Yuk yuk.  At our bathroom stop in Nenana we were greeted by a cute little lady who was a pool shark in a previous life.  At the end of our visit, she brought out her accordion and serenaded us. Wow.  Another day, another character... We pulled up to the lodge and hopped another bus to Denali National Park.  The goal of this tour was to see as many animals as possible. River, our guide, (yes, that's really his name) has been driving this route for 20 years. The highway taking us into the middle of Denali went from paved, to paved with torn- up sections to gravel.  There were times that the road was scarily narrow.   Our trip covered 65 miles, one way. We saw Caribou, Dall sheep, Grizzlies, more Caribou, red Fox and finally a MOOSE!  So far we've not seen a moose and joked that we never would see one.  The entire trip took about 7 hours and was so...okay I'm running out of descriptive words.  Our bus group was fun and helpful. Rick said that the "spotters" that we had were the key to a good trip.  Most of the wildlife we could see very well looking through our  binoculars.   River told us that the Dall Sheep are usually on the hillsides, a bunch of white dots. Suddenly we see one standing on a rock outcropping. The bus pulled forward to get a good photo angle. About 20 yards farther, someone spied another one RIGHT BY THE ROAD!     Rick got some pretty good photos of them.  River said he was glad he didn't make any bets that we would see a Dall sheep closer than the first one. One the return trip at that same spot, we saw one even closer.   Rick said it was a good thing we didn't open the door, he might have boarded the bus!   Although the sun came out and the temp was warm, we still couldn't see Mt. McKinley.  Each time there was an animal sighting, the driver stopped and turned a little video camera on the critter, which played in real time on the on -board TV monitors.  The fairly good zoom on the video camera allowed everyone to see the animals. River said that he hated the videos at first but since changed his mind and has gotten lots of positive comments, especially those with impaired vision.   What a wonderful day... The Denali Princess Lodge where we stayed was lovely and also BIG.  This is a major hub for Princess, with busses coming and going for tours and for the next lodge.   Multiple buildings held guest rooms, gift and snack shops, and guest services.  The night went FAST considering we needed to have our bags out by 7:30 AM.  Our travel mates signed on for a jeep trip this morning but we chose to relax, shop a little and see the town.  We have very little room to spare in our luggage so we're choosing our souvenirs carefully.  I guess I'll pass on the $2800 arctic mink jacket.  I'm thinking PETA doesn't have a branch office here.  We left Denali Headed to the McKinley Lodge, about 2 hours. We are so ready to leave the busses behind.  It's not uncommon to have only pit toilets at the rest stops. This relatively short ride had one stop with NO restrooms.  Okay, back to the bus...oh my...they for got to clean this one...UGH.  Thus endth the toilet report.   McKinley Lodge compound is large with multiple buildings similar to Denali but no shops.  We are captive here, with the nearest town, Talkeetna, one hour away.  We won't be here long, though.  Luckily the clouds opened giving us a peek (peak?) at the mountain the Natives call The Great One.  Our first sighting, we were searching for the summit way too low. Then Rick pointed higher and...it truly is UP in the sky.  GLORIOUS.  Drinks, dinner, then bed.  The sunny skies meant our rooms were about 80 degrees. None of our rooms so far had air conditioning but it wasn't a problem until now.  OHhh...that's what the fan in the closet is for!   This morning we left McKinley Lodge for Talkeetna where we boarded the train to Whittier, where we board the ship.  Since we needed to have our luggage ready to go at 6:30 AM (!), we left early headed to Talkeetna for breakfast at the Roadhouse. Our Bus driver this time filled us in on the climbers who attempt to summit McKinley.  This year, five people who attempted the climb, perished.  The success rate is less than 50% due to the weather, avalanches and other hazards.  The Roadhouse is a common stopping spot for the climbers.  It's a no frills place where a full order consists of 7 scrambled eggs (eggs come any style as long as it's scrambled) , and all the trimmings. The pancakes are 2" larger than the dinner plates.  Cary ordered white toast. Waiter says, "toast comes only two ways: toast or no toast.". I guess if you climb McKinley and your life is on the line, such things become unimportant. As I write this we are on our 5-hour train trip to Whittier.  Clear sky day in our domed rail car, we just passed through Wasilla, home of Sarah Palin.  We've met several people who are on our same tour. One of our favorites reminds us of our dear Sean.  The young man, Trevor, about 11 yrs old, traveling with his sister and their grandparents.  First noticed them in Valdez when we were on the boat trip all day.  I told the grandparents that I noticed how well behave the kids are. They thanked me and asked me if I'd been drinking!  Since then we've seen them everywhere: on the bus, in town, in the hallway...They always speak and ask how our day went.  His grandma said that he was trying to hit on the waitress the other day.  Yesterday, Trevor was wearing a shirt that said 'Cool beyond my years'. That's so Sean. It makes us miss him (and all the grand babies -  love you!).