Alaska - the interior - part 1

We got off of the ship at 8:45 AM in rain. The free Seward shuttle took us to our motel. Of course, we were too early to check in - by 7 hours! We were able to check our luggage. We went for a walk and stopped at a bakery for hot chocolate and a treat – it was nice to get out of the rain.

About 11 AM, we boarded our boat for the Major Marine Tour of Kenai Fjords National Park. Although it was very cool (actually cold), we were comfortable inside the boat. Ray did spend a lot of time outside though. We saw sea lions, 

porpoises, sea otters (they are adorable floating on their backs!), many pods of Orca whales (at one time there were at least 50 whales around us!), 

humpback whales, puffins (so fun to watch), a black bear, cormorants, eagles, and seagulls. It was a great trip but a little rough sailing at times. For dinner on the boat, we had salmon (some of the best I’ve ever had!) and prime rib. It really was a great day and the rain stopped when we got out a ways. When we returned to the dock, about 6 1/2 hours later, it was still raining is Seward!

The next morning, breakfast at the motel was interesting - instead of a waffle machine, they had a pancake machine! This is a new one for us - you just dial in the number of pancakes you want and push the button!

I just wanted one so I put a plate there to catch it and here it comes.

 It was pretty darn good!

After breakfast, we checked out the quilt shop, Sew’n Bee Cozy, a nice little shop! Seward is a neat little town. We actually wish we 'd had more time there. This was a neat building. 

While walking around Seward in a mist, we saw a magnificent rainbow against the mountains.  

There is still a lot of fog above it.


We headed over to get our rental car – ended up with a Dodge Durango. Before leaving the Seward area, we hiked to Exit Glacier. Can you see the people in the picture? They are a little more than halfway down on the right side.

It is really impressive to get so close to a glacier and to see how much it recedes each year. This one loses about a half inch every hour!

Zaandam Cruise - part 3

Some interesting things:

1. About 2 hours into our cruise, the Captain said there was a medical emergency. A boat had to dock with the ship and the patient was off-loaded.

2. We saw the firemen practicing one day in full uniform!

3. The next day there was a fire on board! Those firemen had it taken care of in no time!

4. We finally say the movie The Hunger Games.

5. After the movie, we were outside on the deck and met 2 couples that live 30 minutes from us!

6. We watched the National Park Service boat dock with the ship and watched the Park Ranger leave our ship.

7. We did the 5K for Breast Cancer.  That was 12 trips around the deck. I might have been a few short!

8. You can always tell the day of the week by the carpet in the elevators. They have the day of the week on them!

9. Most of the crew are from Indonesia and the Philippines and work 10 months contracts – that is 12 hour days 7 days a week! And they still smile!

Zaandam Cruise - part 2

We stopped at three ports on our way north.

First port was Ketchikan. 

We walked miles that day! A lady told us that Ketchikan is an island with 15,000 people and only 30 miles of road!

 We saw many of the totem poles.

 They are all around town.

Second port of call was Juneau. We took a photo safari trip on a boat just like this. (We were on our boat so I couldn't take a picture of it!) We had 7 people, our guide Annie and our driver Jim.

 We saw many humpback whales.

 Later we spent time on land hiking in the Tongass National Forest. Look at the size of the leaf that Annie is holding!

 We hiked to Mendenhall Glacier. Yeah - it was a cloudy, rainy day! And we were drenched by the time we got back to the ship. But we had a great time!

 Later in the day we took a pictures of Juneau from the ship.

Our third port was Skagway. We visited quilt shops at every port, of course! - this one is in Skagway.

 This building is made of driftwood.

 The old buildings are really interesting.

Even though the weather has been less than desirable, we had a wonderful trip! 

Zaandam Cruise - part 1

We are once again on land but Wi-Fi is a little iffy in rural Alaska. I'll post when I can.

We cruised from Vancouver, British Columbia to Seward, Alaska on the Zaandam, one of the dam ships! Most of our days were overcast and cool. We did have some rain but we had a great time and met some interesting people including two couples that live 30 miles from us!

A great part of any cruise is food!

Most of the time we ate on the Lido Deck, deck 8. The dining area was at the back of the ship.

It is cafeteria 'plus' style. It is set up like a cafeteria line but the food was great and you could get many things cooked to order. The crew would gladly get you whatever you wanted while you were in the line and/or while you were seated. We usually chose window seats as did most people.

The Dining Room was on decks 4 and 5 at the back of the ship. Every meal was four courses and everything was served. My chair was always pulled out by a crew member and my napkin was placed on my lap for me.

One afternoon we were fortunate to have a tour of the kitchen. This is the head chef - he was really friendly and we saw him often in the dining areas.

This crew member was preparing vegetables.

 We had many kinds of bread everyday.

One night was the dessert extravaganza - the pictures can't begin to show the beauty! There were ice sculptures.

 Lots of desserts and flowers!

The extravaganza was set up around the pool (we didn't get a photo of the pool that night - the dome was closed.) The seas were a little high that night and the pool water was rolling over the sides of the pool. 

And I just had to include a couple of the flower arrangements - they were beautiful!

I don't think I ever sat anywhere inside the ship where I couldn't see fresh flowers!

Vancouver - Day 3

Vancouver is rated as the #1 place to live by various studies. We really enjoy visiting this city but it is very expensive. Today, we found that an average small one bedroom apartment/condo downtown would cost at least $500,000! The man at the desk here at The Lord Stanley just told us that BC (British Columbia) means Bring Cash! 

There are 2.5 million people in the Vancouver area - it is quite densely populated. Green space and water features are incorporated wherever possible making it not seem like a cement city. It really is quite clean, friendly, and easy to get around. You can even rent a car by the minute at Car 2 Go!

Today has been another beautiful day! Still warm - around 30 (that's Celsius)! We saw a number of outdoor weddings complete with horse drawn carriages. 

This morning, we walked to Gastown - a couple of miles or about 4 kilometers. We decided to walk on some different streets and I joked that if we ended up in China Town, that meant we had walked through the less desirable area where many homeless spend their time. We found Gastown with no trouble.  

Here is the Steam Clock.

After shopping for a while we decided to find Save On Meats - a place that Guy Fieri featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives last night. We thought we might be close but we had to go a couple of blocks south to get to the right street. All of a sudden we were definitely in that less desirable area. After walking about a block, we found Save On Meats but decided to pass. Neither of us was very comfortable in that area. We went back to the tourist area of Gastown and ate at The Old Spaghetti Factory.

Then we caught the blue line  trolley back to Canada Place – many of the Anime Revolution participants were out and about. These kids posed for Ray.

We caught a red line trolley and rode down Robson Street - the major downtown shopping district. They usually have 16,000 people in that shopping district everyday! 

We hopped off at Vancouver Aquarium in Stanley Park. There were lots of people there but we could see the exhibits. I enjoyed seeing the beluga whales.

We walked home – it was probably a couple of miles so yes, we are getting exercise!

After a rest – oh, it felt good to take my shoes off! – we headed to Safeway to get something for dinner. The sidewalks are full of people – weird looking people! Today was the Vancouver Zombie Walk 2012!

Tonight we are taking it easy - tomorrow is cruise day!

additional note: It is dusk and some bikers just went by - their bike frames (the whole frames) are flashing lights of neon colors! Cool!

Vancouver - Day 2

On day two, we bought tickets for the On-Off Trolley and headed for Stanley Park. First stop was the Rose Garden.

It was gorgeous!

On to the totem poles

and Prospect Point. This is Lions Gate Bridge taken from way above the road.

We took the False Creek Ferry to Granville Island. It is such a fun place to go - lots of funky art

and a Farmer's Market like no other. This photo shows only a tiny part!

While we had lunch outside at Bridges,

we watched the boats, kayaks, paddle boats, paddle boarders, and ferries. It was a gorgeous day!

Much later, we stopped at Canada Place and the new Convention Center and got to see the cauldron from the 2010 Olympics.

We also saw gold, silver, and bronze medals from the 2010 Olympics.

While at Canada Place, we were surrounded by thousands of teenagers - it was the Anime Revolution. Wow! I didn't get any photos - I was just trying to stay out of their way!

Vancouver - Day 1

It was a great plane trip to Vancouver except we had to get up very early in the morning! After the storms in Chicago, we got above the clouds and eventually the skies cleared somewhat. It was exciting to see Mount Rainier.

Once in Vancouver, things went so smoothly - customs, getting luggage, grabbing a taxi. Our 'home' was even ready when we arrived early. Our stay at The Lord Stanley has been wonderful. Our little apartment - about 600 square feet - is actually very functional. We have a bedroom, living room (sun was so bright the picture is dark - sorry)

a full bath, a kitchen with a built-in table,

office area, and a sitting room which is perfect for our luggage.

I found it on VRBO.com for about $100/night cheaper than renting direct! The location is perfect - right in the heart of everything. About a block away there is a United Nations of restaurants! The Safeway grocery store is 1 1/2 blocks. Stanley Park Lost Lagoon is 1 1/2 blocks. 

We spent the first afternoon finding a place for lunch and wondering around. I forgot that places just open up to the weather. This a picture of Fatburgers - a great place for lunch!

The weather has been extremely hot for here - mid 90s! The forecast a week ago said 70s so we didn't pack shorts. On the way to Chicago, I checked the weather and we decided to bring the shorts we were wearing that day. Anyway, it is nice to have a washer and dryer because I wash those shorts every night!