This is the look of four very relaxed people near the end of our seven day cruise to Alaska. Wow, did we feel happy and pampered! Thanks to Mom's generosity we were able to spend a week together laughing, exploring, eating great food, and enjoying one another's company, along with many of Mom's siblings.
Most days included a few card games or some yahtzee on Deck 14, near the food court. While we played to our hearts content, our fabulous waiters made sure we had all the beverages we could possible want, mostly ice water, but on this particular cool day, hot chocolate was in order, and warm blankets were provided as well.
Clockwise from the left, Marilyn, Lyle, Wes, Mom, Nayda and Alene.
And at a very nearby table playing 9 card Golf, we have, clockwise from the left, Hilda, Marilyn, Theron and Alan.
Happily on board and waiting for departure from Seattle on a beautiful day in August.
A great view of the waterfront from Pier 99.
You have to excuse Wes, he hasn't had a vacation in a long time, it took him awhile to "let go", put the phone down, and just enjoy the ride!
Ok, that's a little better! Hanging loose on the back of the ship as we pulled out into Puget Sound. We just had to take advantage of the sun and warmth. After all, heading to Alaska usually means clouds and rain, so who knew when we would get to use the awesome pools and hot tubs and lounge chairs out on the beautiful ship decks, if not today?
Good bye Seattle, hello to adventure!
Somewhere near the strait of Juan de Fuca. This is about the time it got super windy and people's stuff started blowing away. Hats, room keys, Paul's water bottle WITH his name on it, ha ha!
We spent the first day getting familiar with the ship, Paul went the extra mile and did a scavenger hunt, getting stamps from all over the ship in just a few short hours and turning in his game card. Lucky guy, he won a free massage at the spa for his hard work!
Monday we took advantage of some fun activities on board.
Here are the three sisters, waiting for a fruit cutting demonstration in the Piazza,
Alene, Marilyn and Donna.
Waiting for the fruit cutting demo. These guys are very creative and very fast!
Monday was our first formal night, time to dress up and pull out the sparkly jewelry!
Tuesday morning we arrived in the quaint town of Ketchikan.
It was another warm and sunny day. Just perfect for bopping around outside.
Mom and I got a good look at the town before deboarding the ship.
We learned that this is where Sarah Palin's "Bridge to nowhere" was to be built, from town across these waters to the airport. It's a 2 minute minute ferry ride, so I agree, it really wasn't worth $223 million.
Just off the Star Princess at our first stop, Ketchican, Alene, Hilda, Marilyn and Donna.
A few of us took a taxi to see the town. This is a nice view point up on a hillside above town. A beautiful place, but we were sure lucky with the weather. It's usually very rainy here.
Wednesday morning we woke up early to see some gorgeous scenery along the Tracy Arm Fjord.
My early morning co-horts.
This is the South Sawyer Glacier, providing lots of icebergs in the water.
I loved the blue tint to the icebergs.
Even the sky was putting on a beautiful show this particular morning.
One of the many waterfalls along the way.
Everyone is in on the action now, enjoying this gorgeous morning, and amazing scenery.
Once we got up to the glacier, our huge ship did a complete 180 degree turn, offloaded some sightseers onto a smaller boat, and headed back downstream.
Another Princess cruise ship arrived as we were leaving.
This was a highlight of the trip for me for sure.
Good bye to Tracy Arm,
Hello to Junea, capital city of Alaska.
My own little brush with fame, speaking of Sarah Palin. Former Governor of Alaska and former VP running mate with John McCain. She's quite the fisher lady.
Paul and I opted to walk to town and put quite a few miles on in the process.
Another glorious day in Alaska!
