Summer

I just thought these two pictures epitomized summer. We have the boys this evening, as beans gift to Rissy was to not have to be a mother for an evening. We took them to the fountain to play. While there, I got these two photos.

Rissy's birthday

Charissa was born 28 years ago on the 23rd of August. We were all together for her birthday.

We started out the day with brunch at Marie Callendar's.

Then we went bowling and Amy had the high score for the day! I wanted to a picture, but didn't get one, to judge who was bigger and rounder, the bowling ball or Rissy's pregnant belly.

After bowling we went back to our house and played Scattergories. LOVE IT!

Then it was on to Bridgeport where the boys played on the play structure while the adults watched and chatted the evening away.

Last we came back to open gifts and have cake. Neil made the cake this year with fondant, a new passion apparently. Look out Julia Child...or whoever is the Julia Child of baking.

Hubbaard Glacier

This glacier is too difficult to appreciate just in photos, as I too have seen pictures before. The glacier is 300 ft above water and 300 below. The face is 6 miles wide! When a piece cracks and falls in tot he water it sounds like thunder! The little dots that you see give you some sense of perspective as they are 300 lb sea lions!

Truly the crown jewel of the cruise, it was breathtaking!

My favorite thing was realizing just how small and insignificant we are in the grand scope of life on earth as we know it. Very humbling! Sounds like a fatalist but was somehow refreshing.

Icy Straight Point

Here we found a VERY small town indeed called Hoonah, home to the historic cannery. We were greeted in the morning by a woman wearing short sleeves and a vest, which she later removed, while we shivered in our winter coats. She smiled and said that 70F was HOT too them! They also believe warmth to be a bad thing, and believe that it harbors illness. They prefer the cold.

I saw a chicken weed (to the right) for the first time ever. Guess what they say it tastes like?

We went on a tram ride through the forested area, and along the beach. THIS was their "bridge" built to allow access to more of the island. It kept "washing away". How's that for primative?

We then attended a show put on by the natives. My favorite thing was when Jeff took part in the dance by becoming a Raven to attract the Eagles.

We had a nice meal by the harbor, and saw a few more eagles, and a sea lion.

It was a one-ship-a day-port, and offered the wilderness experience I expected from Alaska.

ZIP Line!

Skagway "land of the North Wind"...now there was adventure! It was the Chicago of Alaska. It is literally one of the windiest places I have ever been. THIS was where we were doing the Zip line. This excursion was a joint decision by everyone.

We spent the morning in town shopping and going to the Red Onion Saloon for lunch. The Red Onion was originally a bordello in the days of the gold rush. Now they did theatrics to give it the authentic touch, as well as gave a tour of the original bordello upstairs. There were trinkets that the girls had received and left behind etc.

That afternoon we returned to the dock to board the bus for the adventure park. We were greeted by a energetic young lady who told us she'd hoped we brought our water bottles as we had a six mile hike uphill ahead of us. The group went silent. She laughed and said our adventure was really to begin just a few hundred feet up hill, which she traversed like a mountain goat effortlessly. I huffed and puffed my way up hill and hung on to branches etc. to the top. Once there we were helped in to our gear which was in essence going to save our necks/lives as we traversed higher than the trees on a metal hook and two ropes.

I was the first to travel across the rope bridge, and hanging balance beam. It was great fun!:-) What a way to experience loss of control! It was a rush to look down and see the tops of trees.

As the who of Skagway is only 4 blocks wide and 23 blocks long, we walked from the end of the shopping district and shopped our way back to the ship famished. We skipped the dinner that evening and noshed as soon as we returned to the boat.

Whale Watching

Jeneau, founded during the gold rush of 1880, found us on our second excursion, whale watching. It was SPECTACULAR!

We were ushered to a boat that went into a beautiful area rich with sea life. We spotted Orcas and the humpback whale. The whales are so enormous, that you have no perspective until you see one up close.

My favorite was the whale calf who kept breeching and then flipping it's tale. You could almost imagine it's mother saying "Junior, now stop that!"

We also saw the Mendenhall Glacier on the same day. It was so blue it was surreal! We are told that it is the density of the ice that gives the glacier it's color.

On this journey we saw a black bear cub about 18 months old from a distance of 10 feet away. The only thing between us and the bear (Jeff's fear) was a bridge, which Jeff said he could have easily jumped over. Though Jeff was afraid of bears he couldn't get close enough and was viewing the bear through his monocular.

We then wandered off the beaten path to the beach and heard a bear growl. THAT was an unmistakable and so memorable. I shall remember that all the days of my life.

This was my excursion pick, which I chose so Jeff could see the wildlife we came to see. I am so glad that I chose that excursion.

Ketchikan

Ketchikan-the Tlingit name for "Thundering Wings of an Eagle" was our first dock. We had our first adventure, Jeff's pick, of Scuba and Snorkeling for Amy and I.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am afraid of fish, fresh water, ocean water, water without cement in essence. STILL we agreed that we would go on each others excursion choices without complaint, so thought it was 59 degrees and raining I went snorkeling. I have to admit that it was the single most feeling of aloneness that I have ever felt. I didn't mind that so much. Then I saw not 1 but 2 of the poisonous lion jellyfish just a short distance away.

I spent the entire snorkeling adventure remembering to stay focused, breath slowly and not panic.

My favorite thing was seeing the Bald Eagle perched on the rock as we entered the ocean, it was majestic. I later learned that he was waiting for the salmon jumping out of the water, shaking their eggs loose, so he could dine on them.

Best of all, I learned that I could do this thing when I committed to sharing in the adventure.

Once we returned to the boat I took a deep breath and relaxed know that the worst part of my journey was indeed at an end.

Incidentally, Jeff assumed I would take a free pass and not go on the snorkeling trip, so thought nothing of planning an adventure that he felt certain he and Amy would enjoy.

Saturday August 8th

Today we were on board all day. This translated to a very lazy day getting up fairly late as there was no natural light in our cabin. We chose an inside cabin with no window for fear that the midnight sun would prevent sleep. So as previously stated we awakened just in time for a late breakfast/early lunch.

We went for a gemstone seminar, watched for whales, and wouldn't you know wwe saw our first whale while Jeff was away from the window for only a short time. The excitement was palatible and we were suddenly surrounded by passengers who wanted to see too! Camera's going off, people crawling over the chair Jeff left empty to get a closer look...insane!

At 3:00 we played BINGO and lost:-( Not even close, BUT we had fun all the same.

That evening was the first of the formal dinners. Before dinner I took a NAP! I highly recommend it every now and again.

Our dining group was a family of seasoned cruisers. They had all gotten together again for their Mom's 75th birthday. They were a fun and diverse group.

All Aboard

August 7th found Jeff, Amy and I headed for Vancouver B.C. We were headed there as it was our embarkation port. We were headed for our Alaskan cruise. 7 days of adventure and forced relaxation! Now that is my kind of combo. Being totally honest I was less than excited about the cruise itself, but thrilled at the prospect of spending time with Amy as it is so rare. This was our gift to Amy as it has been a dream of hers for years. We decided we ought to be there to share in that dream. How we reaped the benefits!



Upon arrival we were greeting as we headed for customs by a Celebrity cruise employee who cheerfully asked "Going on a cruise?" Why yes we are! They herded us to a counter where we collected transfer tickets, and then on to customs, we a most unhumerous gentleman looked over our passports carefully and failed to stamp them. Weird. But from there, everything was a smooth as the waters we were about to sail. It was so easy compared to Princess Cruises that we were delighted.



Upon embarkation we were presented with a glass of champagne, and told our state rooms were on ready just yet, so please enjoy the buffet. Done! We went with out few carry on items and ate while everyone else boarded.



When the ship disembarked we went to the 10th deck to watch as the huge ship back out into the water. Amazing that a small city can be backed out! The weather was cool as we left Vancouver, but not unpleasant.

We were amazed that our big floating town could fit under the relatively low bridge. As we passed under we guessed which direction the captain would take and set about relaxing.