Friday, September 29, 2023: North to Alaska, Go North the Rush Is
On...
We had a lovely, panoramic view of Seattle as we set sail from the port on
Royal Caribbean's
Ovation of the Seas late this afternoon.
During our time in Seattle, we rarely found ourselves in a location from which
we could catch a view of the city's skyline, so this perspective was pleasing. We've enjoyed our time here, but
Seattle didn't strike me as a place to which I absolutely must return. It's
oftentimes oppressively busy, with typical urban transportation ills — so much
so this afternoon that Terry and I weren't sure we could get the rental car back
to SeaTac and then locate transportation to the cruise port before the blasted
ship sailed. Fortunately, we found a cabbie who probably set speed records along
the way. (He likely does this run daily.)
Once we were settled on board, the four of us headed to one of the ship's
cafés for a little afternoon Good Morning, America. After a stiff, much-needed caffeine
pick-me-up, we went to dinner at
Wonderland Restaurant on Deck 5. This upscale establishment is an "experience" in dining, and I'll
go so far as to say it was one of the best meals I've ever eaten. I started
with a "Smoke Ring" cocktail, which is something of a souped-up Old Fashioned,
heavily smoked. It was delicious, though not particularly strong — probably a
good thing since the cruise ship is basically a big floating bar. A round of
various, tiny appetizers based on five natural elements — Earth, Sea, Fire,
Ice, and Sun — featuring lobster, shrimp, mushrooms, eggs, and other savory
treats followed. For the main course, I chose braised beef and mashed
potatoes, which came with an array of puréed vegetables that perfectly complemened the cooked critter. It was the tenderest, most flavorful beef ever. Brugger went
with a chicken dish, also excellent. Topped off with delicious desserts, this
was indeed a wonderful (if very expensive) and memorable meal.
Afterward, we plopped down in the ship's theater to watch the ship's cruise
director make funny, followed by a comedian named Landry, who generally
was funny. That was about all the energy we had in us, so we called it
an early night.
Good night, Seattle — we love you! (Kinda.)
Saturday, September 30, 2023: High on the High Seas and There Be Whales Here!
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The view straight down through the
glass flooring on deck 15
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Brugger and I rose early, mainly because there was a time change during the
night — we crossed from Pacific Daylight Time to Alaska Daylight Time, so we
had to convince our still slightly discombobulated bodies to back up yet a
hair further after having finally adjusted to Pacific Time. After a very
light breakfast courtesy of room service, Ms. B. and I set about wandering
the ship, seeing the sights and seeking certain necessary items from one of
the onboard shops. According to my health app, we put in two-plus miles,
which I reckon we needed since our feeding frenzies have been frequent and
impressive.
From our stateroom balcony, I noticed a voluminous spray not far from the
ship and, a moment later, a big, dark hump that broke the surface and then
submerged. How cool is that? A whale! So far on this trip, we've seen Kyle
MacLachlan, a rattlesnake, and a whale. Don't see any of these much back
home. Not ever, really, when you think about it. So chalk up another new and
different experience.
We joined our compadres for lunch at one of the ship's restaurants; it was
good, not great (I think it was grocery store–bought BBQ). For afters, Brugger and I headed to the uppermost decks to
hitch a ride on the Northstar — a globe that holds about a
dozen folks, attached to an arm that rises to a height of 300-some feet. For
fifteen minutes, from way up high, we had a wide view of the open seas as
well as the mountains of Moresby Island. The wind was strong — right at the
limit of the Northstar's tolerances, according to our host — so it was bumpy
up there, but we didn't fall over or anything. That's always a plus.
Later, our gang gathered for drinks at a couple of the shipboard
establishments, and Terry and I enjoyed several intriguing games of pool —
intriguing because the less-than-level-and-steady surface of the pool table
presented us with ongoing and amusing challenges. I won the best of three,
but I kinda of credit this to the table performing weird acrobatics beneath
our balls.
Dinner and a brief, ill-fated visit to the casino rounded out the
evening. Tomorrow: Juneau.
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View of the Ovation from the Northstar as it rises to its full
height
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Sunday, October 1, 2023: Juneau What? We're in Alaska!
I woke up this morning, looked out our stateroom window, and, through a
veil of mist and rain, saw Alaska drifting by. When I stepped out on the
balcony with bare feet, I hollered a bit, because it was... well, Alaska.
Initially, there wasn't much to see because the atmosphere was so thick,
but Brugger and I did lay eyes on another whale not far from the ship. As
we drew nearer to Juneau, the fog began to lift and the mountains along
the shoreline — only a few hundred feet away — grew taller and greener.
Soon, we saw numerous waterfalls that plummeted from the tops of the high
ridges all the way down to sea level. Eventually, we saw the buildings of
Juneau creeping up ahead on starboard. Our original arrival time was
supposed to be 1:00 p.m., but we were apparently quite early, having made
considerable headway overnight.
There was still some time before disembarking, so Brugger and I spent a
brief but relaxing spell in the hot tub at the ship's solarium. We had a
quick pizza lunch with the Nelsons, I slapped my geocaching hat on my
head, and then... Alaska, here we come! There were several caches around
the port, and I managed to make quick work of them. Well, work of them,
anyway. The womenz went shopping, needless to say. Terry and I found drink
and light vittles at a quirky tavern called the
Red Dog Saloon, Eventually, Brugger and Beth joined us, and we hung out for a while
before going our separate ways — the womenz back shopping, Terry back to the
ship, and I out for geocaching. Six and a half miles I hoofed it, which was
enough for me to explore a fair part of this very small city. I saw the entire port district, the governor's mansion, several fun little backroads, and
some panoramic views from on high. I logged six traditional caches and
fourteen Adventure Lab stages, which I'd call a dingy-dang good total for
the day.
Ms. B. and I had intended to have dinner at a particular seafood restaurant
in town, but it was closed for the season. We checked out a couple of other
places — also closed — and when we finally found an open one, they were so
full up (no doubt because every other place was closed) that we would have
had almost an hour's wait. So we said fuck that, trucked back to the ship,
and found dinner at Izumi Sushi, which I'd call one helluva good
dinner. We closed out the night with a final drink at the
Schooner Bar, which would become one of our regular shipboard
hangouts.
Tomorrow: Skagway.
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| Into Juneau |
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Nary a crabby person to be seen at Red Dog Saloon. Well, maybe one.
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Monday, October 2, 2023: Moose and Squirrel!
The
Ovation dropped anchor in the port of
Skagway,
Alaska, very early this morning, and, after slaughtering a decent breakfast, our
gang made its way into town to procure a vehicle for our do-it-yourself tour
to
Emerald Lake in Canada's
Yukon Territory.
Vehicle acquired, Ms. B. got behind the wheel and drove us through blinding rain
and fog high into the mountains, where — happily — the sun came through, burned
off most of the errant vapor, and presented us with some of the most spectacular
scenery any of us have ever seen.
We spotted bear! We spotted moose! We spotted squirrel! We spotted mountain
goat! We spotted geocaches! At Emerald Lake, while seeking a cache, I
happened upon a ruffled grouse, who gave me such a stink-eye that I damn near
ran away. Then he flew off, thoroughly berating Ms. B. as he passed. What a
jerk!
Once back at the ship, our gang had dinner in the restaurant, drank at one of
the bars, danced... somewhere... and then Terry and I hit the casino. I must
say, he had far better luck than I did, and I suspect my gambling on this trip
is over and done with. All in all, though, I'd call this one incredible,
spectacular day. Looky at the pictures!
Tuesday, October 3, 2023: Endicott Arm
About dawn, the Ovation entered the Endicott Arm, a
channel of the Inside Passage south of Juneau, so that we might view the
Dawes Glacier. Brugger and I got up for an early breakfast. Then we
spent a frigid morning on (and often off) our balcony photographing the
spectacular mountains and myriad waterfalls as we sailed slowly past. Once
relatively close to the glacier, the ship stopped for a while, but thick mist
prevented clear views. The glacier was definitely cool to see, but it was the
mountains and waterfalls along the channel that we found most inspiring.
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Iceberg! Right ahead!
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At noon, our gang met at our regular shipboard dining room for lunch, which
was leisurely... perhaps a tad more leisurely than we usually prefer. The ship
is jam-packed, bordering on oppressive for those of us who suffer from crowd
anxiety (which gets to me more and more in my old age). The food in the main
dining room is pretty good; better, I think, than the fare on Rhapsody of the Seas on our Mediterranean cruise a few years ago. I have to give a lot of credit
to the Ovation's servers and crew in general, most of whom bend over
backward to make sure you're satisfied. I'm pretty easy to please, so none of
them have chucked any heavy or sharp objects at me. I'm not so sure about the
others in our party...
For the better part of the afternoon, we hung out in the solarium, both in the
hot tub and in the multi-level pool. In the hot tub, a young woman noticed my
geocaching hat and mentioned to me that she geocached as well. We ended up
having a long conversation, while Terry ended up yakking with a Navy vet, with
whom he apparently shared some history. That left Kimberly and Beth stuck
between their husbands carrying on at length with other folks. At least they
had each other.
Before dinner, we met again at the Schooner Bar, and then... Italian night at
the restaurant. The second-best beef carpaccio I've ever had. A fair filet of
sole, and a delicious Coffee Pot del Crema for dessert. Afterward...
somehow... we ended up back at the Schooner Bar and listened to their
entertaining piano man. Throughout the evening, the seas had grown
increasingly rough, and the ship rocked and swayed madly during our entire
outing. We drank a bit, but the ship's movement made us feel positively
blasted. After our gang broke up for the night, Brugger and I went down to the
pool tables for a bit of fun and... oh, my lord, trying to play pool on a
rocking ship was silly enough that we figured it for an impromptu slapstick
show.
Apparently, while we were doing these things, the ship's crew hung large
quantities of Feel Better Bags on all the stairway railings for those inclined
to get seasick. Thankfully, for us, all that rocking and rolling made for
nothing more than a good night's sleep.
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That's the glacier in the center; the mist was too dense to make out
much detail.
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Wednesday, October 4, 2023: It's Pitch White Outside
Today was a full day at sea, and Brugger and I felt it was high time we took a
break from the typical cruise routine of starting drinking at an early hour and
keeping it going. There was a time change last night when the
Ovation crossed back to Pacific Daylight Time from Alaska Daylight Time,
so we basically lost the hour we had gained on our northward voyage. It's still
three hours earlier than back home and, most of the time, we don't even know
what day it is, much less the time on the clock. Maybe even more so today
because, outside, there's an impenetrable veil of fog that's hung there since we
crawled out of bed.
I wanted to make some forward progress on the short story I'm composing, so,
for a while, I sat out on the balcony and composed away. At noon, we met Terry
& Beth at the restaurant for lunch. A fair burger, it was. Then Brugger
and I decided to find a place on the ship where she could make art and
I could write, just for the change of scenery. We secured a couple of
acceptable seats outside Vintages Wine Bar on Deck 5 and proceeded to write,
paint, draw, drink coffee, and leer at the passersby. When we returned to our
stateroom, it was still pitch white outside.
Or maybe...
Gojira! No sooner had I written the preceding than a brilliant burst of white light
appeared on the ocean's surface some distance to starboard. I knew right away
this was Godzilla rising. Kimberly said it was a reflection of the sun, now
burning its way through the fog. But I know better.
Late in the afternoon, Terry, Beth, Ms. B., and I met for the shooting of some
pool (or in my case, the massacre of some pool) and then an excellent dinner
at the restaurant; shrimp cocktail and lobster tails for this old landlubber.
For the remainder of the evening, we settled ourselves in Vintages with a
round of decent red vino.
We have one more full day on the cruise. Tomorrow, it's Victoria, British
Columbia. Don't know much about Victoria, but the geocaching map tells me it
will be worth my while. I dunno about anyone else's while.
I'm telling you: it was Godzilla out there. Because I know
better.
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| Gojira! |
Thursday, October 5, 2023: Named After Our Lady
Today, it was
Victoria — our penultimate destination on the cruise. Tomorrow, we'll
dock and disembark in Vancouver.
I set out early this morning, shortly after the
Ovation docked, bound
for several caches around the port area. For a couple of them, I ended up
walking all the way to the lighthouse at the end of the breakwater, which was
good for a good mile and a half of hoofing right there. After that, Brugger
came out to meet me, and we headed toward town, stopping at shops and caches
along the way. For lunch, we happened upon the
Cactus Café, which turned out to be an agreeable, somewhat upscale establishment. Terry
and Beth soon joined us there — what late bloomers! The food was good, and
the Aperol spritzes were tasty and refreshing.
After that, we wandered a bit more and eventually ended up at
Fisherman's Wharf. It's loaded with food kiosks and beer joints, which would have been more
appealing if we hadn't already had lunch. It was kind of fun to visit, and I
did grab a cache there. At last, we decided to head back to the ship. At the
end of it, I'd put in right about eight miles on my feetzes. And now my
feetzes are kinda sore!
For the evening, our priority was packing up for an early departure in the
morning.
Overall, this has been an enjoyable cruise; some hiccups with elevators out of
service, EXPENSIVE internet service that tended to be sporadic at best, seemingly endless chaos getting settled in the dining room, and a
few other glitches... mostly only minor annoyances. The spectacular stuff we've
seen and done has been REALLY spectacular, so it more than balances out. I've
now seen a part of the United States as well as a country — Canada — I'd
never previously visited, so I'm calling this an experience I deeply value.
And all with the best of friends. It doesn't get much better.
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In the Houses of Parliament, everybody's talking about the President
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Canadian Dinosaurs!
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