I See Land

Thursday, May 9, 2019

Land, I see land!  We're passing through the Gastineau Channel on our way to Juneau, our first port.  I can't wait to plant my feet upon solid ground.

Coming into Juneau.  We're lucky because it's not raining, in fact, we only encountered light drizzle in Victoria (but I'm getting ahead of myself).  Juneau became the capital in 1959 upon statehood. It is the only state capitol with no road access.  It is approximately 3,081 square miles.

The library is the first building one encounters when getting off the ship! I have little time to explore downtown before my excursion to Mendenhall Glacier, the Alaska State Museum and a rain forest garden.    I went into a fur store.  Omg, the touch of mink is exquisite.That's probably not P.C. to say.  Our guide Kyle who hails from Idaho when not doing a stint in Juneau was so funny and knowledgeable. We had an hour in the museum.  It was an amazing learning experience.  Hey, it's not all about being on the Love Boat.... The rainforest garden was sort of a bust but the couple who manage it gave us a good lecture on Alaska. 

Next stop on the bus is Mendenhall Glacier.  Kyle, our guide, shared funny stories about the grand opening of McDonald's, the closing of Walmart, the husband who didn't speak up that his wife didn't get back on the bus....  The Internet has made a big difference; Amazon delivers in 2-3 days.  My companion on the bus told me his sister got married the night before in the chapel on our ship.  Omg, small world, I happened to have walked by the chapel and saw the ceremony!  I'm wearing my university windbreaker.  Turns out quite a number of people on the bus are graduates and one is a professor.  Small world, eh.

Here we are at Mendenhall Glacier.  It stretches from the Juneau Icefield to Mendenhall Lake.  My companion and I walked to the waterfall which you can see in this picture.  I tried to capture the rainbow in it in another photo but was unsuccessful.  When we got back to Juneau, my companion went off to do the Mt Roberts Tram ride.  I should have signed up to do that!  He and I would meet up later to see a show aboard the ship.  Shout out to the crew in terms of getting us on and off the ship.  Remarkably well organized the entire trip.  Tomorrow we enter Skagway.  Another adventure awaits.

At Sea

May 7 and 8, 2019

We're at sea.  I'm starting to panic.  Nothing but ocean.  What to do?  I explored the ship trying to understand all the different decks.  Oooh, I can eat pizza or have an ice cream cone. It was much too cold and windy to stay out on deck for very long.  Oh totally cool, I received a text message from The Boyfriend.  He is following my cruise online.  He knows more than me since my Internet access is limited.  I didn't buy the onboard package.  What's sort of creepy is that Verizon knows where I am and is informing me what to do....

Thank God for entertainment like the food sculpting event.  Hilarious. My U.K. dinner companion bought me a Bailey's Irish Cream.  Who am I to say no...

This was super. The captain poured champagne and took photos with passengers.  And we got a glass or two, or in my case, 3, plus the pineapple mojito I had earlier.  The next thing I knew, I was dancing the night away at the Motown musical and with crew in the Explorers Lounge.  It was a fun evening.  Sleep has been exquisite.  The rocking of the boat is perhaps like being in the womb?  Until tomorrow.

10 day Alaska Inside Passage on the Grand Princess

Monday, May 6, 2019

Oh hello.  Here I am aboard the Grand Princess, my first cruise experience.  The Boyfriend dropped me off. I had to hop out of his car since the traffic was horrendous, so, no teary eyed farewell.  I will be traveling alone (hmm, all by myself -- time to party!!) from San Francisco to Alaska's Inside Passage and back.  My captain John Harry Smith from Cheltenham, England informed us that the total distance traveled is:  3,193 nautical miles or 3,675 statute miles.

A view of San Francisco.  Boarding was incredibly well organized.  I had lunch with a widow from Vacaville whose husband was, wait, wait for it, yes, a fireman!  After lunch I proceeded to my stateroom, Emerald Deck 8 where I was greeted by my steward.  Each evening, he places chocolates on my pillow.  What can I say....

We all gathered around 4pm to set sail.  Already, the party has begun.  I'm dancing with a woman to "North to Alaska."  It's quite chilly but my belly is full of some alcoholic beverage that warms me up.  I have already forgotten my life outside this cruise.

The Golden Gate Bridge looms in the distance.  We had a delay to due to a freighter.  No worries, we continued dancing and drinking.

Whew, we made it under the bridge.  Into choppy weather the next few days.  I didn't need sea sickness pills after all. In the evening, I went to the Botticelli dining room to meet my companions. Several of them had done this cruise multiple times.  One woman fascinated me -- she was a retired police officer from the U.K. on holiday for 3 months.  She was 6'2 and was present for Princess Diana's wedding and funeral.  She only flies Quantas first class.  She bought us wine.  Many people bought me alcoholic beverages on the trip.  Nice.  I only went 3 times as I preferred doing the buffet and I quickly got over my fear of eating alone.  The food is frigging delicious and healthy -- seafood, vegetables, salads, poultry, and more.  Our crew is represented by 46 nationalities.  Wow.  They often work 9 months at a time.  I learned later that when we returned, they turned around and did the cruise again.  Omg.  There are approximately 2500 passengers, majority being Californians. However, I met people from New Jersey, Nevada, Minnesota, U.K., Australia, New Zealand, etc.  Until tomorrow....