PeaSea8ch

These airport / city tour transfers are managed like the shore excursions onboard and require a minimum participation level. Several years ago. I had pre booked and paid for this along with my shore excursions prior to sailing.

3 days before disembarking the ship, the Destinations Manager told me the airport / city transfer was cancelled and he credited my shipboard account. Since this was a European port, I emailed my TA and she booked a car transfer to the airport.

MomC, premium wines and anything in the gift shop are prime candidates.

 

The following are suggestions.  I do not know if Seabourn would allow using an OBC for the following: casino gaming; deposit for an open booking on a future Seabourn cruise; using a private car, arranged by Seabourn, for disembarkation to either an airport or a post cruise hotel you booked outside of Seabourn.

Ketchikan Sailaway 3 of 3

Juneau:

Mendenhall Valley Flora 3 of 4

San Francisco:

Golden Gate Park 1 of 9

Epilogue:

Dale Chihuly Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 9 of 13

 

Dear Readers,

In my zeal to finally get my travelogue posed into Cruise Critic, I found out that some of the photo links to my image hosting site were truncated and a few duplicate photos that had to be corrected after the “edit post” window of opportunity expired.  Hence, I have corrected these photos below:

 

Our Neighbors In Ketchikan The HAL Eurodam & ...

... The HAL Nieuw Amsterdam

 

Ketchikan Antique Car Collection:

 

Park Antique Cars Collection 4 of 6

 

Ketchikan Sailaway:

 

Ketchikan Sailaway 1 of 3

 

Ketchikan Sailaway 2 of 3

 

*** Corrections Continue in Next Post ***

 

Farewell Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 11 of 13

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 12 of 13

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 13 of 13

 

Farewell Freeze Frames Continued:

 

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 6 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 7 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 8 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 9 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 10 of 13

 

 

*** Farewell Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

 

 

Sojourn 2018 B2B Alaska and America’s Gold Coast Vol. 15 #18 – Epilogue

 

Arrival at Los Angles World Cruise Center – Disembarkation always goes quickly and smoothly on Seabourn.  The entire operation lasted between 1 and 1.25 hours because US Customs & Border Protection allowed the luggage to be continuously offloaded from the ship by luggage tag color to expedite getting folks on their way as fast as possible.  Once ashore I found out there was no passport control, so I handed my Customs Declaration Form to an Agent and simply walked out the door and exited the terminal where I contacted my transportation service to drive me home.  I arrived home around 11 AM. thereby officially ending my wonderful Seabourn Sojourn 20-night Ultimate Alaska and Pacific Gold Coast adventure.

 

All good things must come to an end and this sailing was no exception. From arrival at the cruise terminal in Vancouver and all the way through departing the cruise terminal in Los Angeles, it was a typical world-class Seabourn experience.  King Neptune even smiled benevolently upon the Sojourn and gave us the smoothest seas even when we were sailing outside the Inside Passage in the Pacific Ocean heading south.  And no rough water sailing into and out of San Francisco, a rarity.

 

My suite stewardess kept things shipshape the entire voyage as well as my mini fridge stocked with my preferences and made certain my dry-cleaning was returned in a timely manner.

The wait staff in the restaurant, outdoor dining venues, bars and lounges were all top-notch. They were all smiling, accommodating and willing to fulfill any passenger requests.

 

The Entertainment Department, of course, was a mainstay of the cruise.  From the hardworking Cruise Director Robert Brendan (RT Vancouver) & Sophie Tehrani (Vancouver to Los Angles and beyond) and their Assistant Cruise Director Richard Hodson kept things running smoothly. Trivia, Guest Entertainers, the in-house band and Club Trio for pre-dinner and after-dinner music and late-night revelry with Amber fronting The Band, pianist/vocalist Alexandra performing before and after dinner in the Observation Bar and last but not least, the Seabourn Odyssey Singers & Dancers.

 

The Seabourn Ventures Team added greatly to the experience!  Team members gave numerous Conversations in the Grand Salon, were available on deck to answer questions about the flora & fauna, glaciers and even photography tips.  Whether your adventure was in a kayak, Zodiac or Catamaran, passenger safety was priority one.

 

Seabourn signature standards, Team Trivia, Liars Club and Rock The Boat were well attended.  Overall, the entertainment was great!

 

I did shore excursions in each port & the Seabourn Ventures Catamaran up close visit to both Sawyer North and South glaciers and enjoyed them all.  Destinations Manager Chris and his team made certain everything went off like clockwork.  The tour operators provided interesting tours with excellent guides and drivers.

 

As some of you may know, Seabourn has “tweaked” the 2020 Alaska itineraries.  Worthy of note, some RT Vancouver sailings have been extended from 12 to 14 days by adding port calls at Hubbard Glacier and Haines.  The repositioning cruise from Vancouver to Los Angles has increased from 8 to 12 days with port calls at Ketchikan, Juneau, Glacier Bay, Sitka, San Francisco, Monterey, Santa Barbara with 4 sea days.

 

If the thought of thousands of passengers at each port and shore excursion sites bothers you, then please consider taking the latest sailing of your preferred itinerary.  And if you are on the last sailings of the season, the shops in the ports will have heavily discounted merchandise to sell.  Both passengers and crew were taking full advantage of the savings!

 

I will now leave you with some of Dale Chihuly’s glass work masterpieces integrated with the landscape beneath Seattle’s iconic Space Needle.

 

Epilogue Freeze Frames:

 

Dale Chihuly Glass Blown Integrated w/ Landscaping 1 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 2 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 3 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 4 of 13

 

Dale Chihuly Blown Glass Integrated w/ Landscaping 5 of 13

 

*** Epilogue Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

 

Santa Barbara, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Santa Barbara Coastline 2 of 4

Santa Barbara Coastline 3 of 4

Santa Barbara Coastline 4 of 4

 

Sojourn 2018 B2B Alaska and America’s Gold Coast Vol. 15 #17 – Santa Barbara, CA

Santa Barbara is a picturesque town nicknamed The American Riviera and set on slopes rising from a handsome sandy beach to the steep backdrop of the Santa Ynez Mountain Range.  The local architecture adheres to the Spanish Colonial style dictated by the Mission that marked its founding, with adobe styled facades and red barrel tiled roofs.

The Mission is a functioning church and the older sections comprise an interesting museum of California’s earliest days as a Spanish colony.  The County Courthouse is a more recent example of the style, ornately finished with colored tiles and handsome murals.  The tall clock tower, with interesting visible clockworks, is an excellent place to take in views of the whole city and the Channel Islands basking in the shining sea offshore.

The harbor is a working fishing port as well as a tourist attraction with restaurants, yacht services and a maritime museum.  At the other end of the yacht marina is Stearns Wharf which extends to an assortment of restaurants and souvenir shops.  Just beyond the mountains, one of California’s most famous wine producing regions awaits as well as the picturesque and quaint Danish community of Solvang.

I was looking forward to the tender operations at this port like the plague.  The last time I had a port stop in Santa Barbara was in December 1993 during an eastbound Panama Canal cruise.  It took a very long time to get the passengers into the tenders and a very rough ride to the pier.  Embarking the passengers to a platform at the pier was not easier than getting them onto the tenders.  Then we had to climb up a rickety ramp without strips of wood nailed to it to assist in safely walking up or down the ramp.  It was 10 times worse than yesterday morning’s tender operations.

After we anchored, I looked towards the pier and quickly realized that it had been rebuilt and was larger and longer and completely populated with restaurants and other venues.  I then looked for ramps and platforms at the waterline and did not see any.  When I saw the first tender heading ashore, it veered off to the left, as it was heading towards the protected inner harbor and we would be disembarking and embarking the tenders at the dock close to the shore.  I was soo happy!

Back on land, I had pre booked the 2.75-hour Montecito Stars & History tour.  We met up with our guide/driver, boarded the minibus and started out by seeing some of the top Santa Barbara attractions on a panoramic drive. First was Stearns’ Wharf, Santa Barbara’s most visited attraction.  It is the oldest working wharf in California.  Heading down he coast, we passed the estate of the late Hugghette Clark, daughter of a US Congressman and oil tycoon.  She had many residences but kept this 23-acre, 80 million-dollar estate, fully staffed at a cost of $40,000 a month; yet it was vacant for more than 60 years!  Hugghette’s story is an interesting one while her home in Montecito is now a museum.

Montecito has long been one of the favorite retreats of Hollywood stars and very wealthy individuals.  From mega mansions of celebrities Oprah Winfrey, Rob Lowe, Ellen DeGeneres, Drew Barrymore and Eric Schmidt and down to American author Sue Grafton’s (Kinsey Millhone ABC murder mysteries) modest home.  As we drove around, it became abundantly clear that the residences were designed for privacy and security.  We drove along the famous streets and saw beautiful landscaping everywhere.  The tall trees everywhere made photography difficult by blocking most, if not all sunlight.  We also saw several homes that were destroyed in the recent 2018 wildfires.  A lady on the tour asked our guide if we could see Actress Gina Davis’ home and, as luck would have it, it was just down the road we were on.  After we slowly drove by someone asked why she wanted to see it.  She replied that she was Gina Davis travel agent and had been invited there a few times for parties.  It is a small world!

After leaving Montecito, we had an hour of free time at a shopping center.  I made a bee line to Starbucks and had my favorite blended, non-fat, White Chocolate Mocha with no whipped cream and window shopped for a while.  After arriving back at the ship, it was nice and sunny, so I decided to have my last lunch onboard at the Patio Grill.  “The Last Supper” dinner was mixed greens & poached pear salad w/ blue cheese crumble, walnut snap, sherry vinaigrette; sautéed scallops & red wine braised beef short ribs w/ horseradish mashed potatoes, sautéed spinach; and finished the meal with a decaf cappuccino.  Yum Yum!

Tonight, would be an early night for me.  After saying my goodbyes, I went up to The Club to dance away some of the calories consumed today and left early to pack what I was wearing to get my luggage outside my door by 12 midnight for pickup by the luggage team.  I then retired for my final journey to Seabourn slumberland this sailing.

Today’s Freeze Frames:

Starting Towards The Mountains

Spanish Style Church

The Late Author Sue Grafton's West Coast Home

Wow, What A Beach!!

Santa Barbara Coastline 1 of 4

*** Santa Barbara, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 21 of 21 - Carmel Flowers

 

Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 16 of 21 - Carmel Beach

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 17 of 21 - Deadwood

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 18 of 21 - Cyprus on the Beach

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 19 of 21 - Carmel Flowers

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 20 of 21 - Carmel Flowers

*** Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 11 of 21 - 18th Hole

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 12 of 21 - Club House

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 13 of 21 - Carmel Beach

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 14 of 21 - Carmel Beach

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 15 of 21 - Carmel Beach

*** Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 6 of 21 - L to R Bird & Seal Rocks

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 7 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 8 of 21 - Tsunami Warning

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 9 of 21 - Lone Cypress Tree

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 10 of 21 - The Author & Photographer

*** Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Sojourn 2018 B2B Alaska and America’s Gold Coast Vol. 15 #16 – Monterey, CA

Monterey Bay is a yawning curve cut away from the Pacific coast of California between San Francisco and the coastal slopes known as Big Sur.  On its southern shore the Spanish mission town of Monterey sprawls across a pine-shaded peninsula.  Back in the day Cannery Row once processed the bounty of oil-rich sardines from the bay.  Today, Cannery row has mostly been converted into luxury hotels, restaurants, galleries and other tourist businesses.  The town is still a working fishing port and Fisherman’s Wharf is a place to get a glimpse of the trade that made the town rich.  Further south is the artists’ colony of Carmel and the world-renowned seaside golf courses of Pebble Beach Resort.

Today, I took the approximately 5.5-hour 17 mile drive & Carmel tour; a major bucket-list item for me with one of America’s most picturesque roads that winds along the rocky coastline.

The first order of business was to tender ashore and the ocean was rough with swells while the ship itself was stable.  The tenders were a moving target going up and down while the tender platform on the ship was stationary.  Hence, it took a while to get the tenders safely loaded and all passengers seated and, on their way, ashore.  It was a bumpy ride but, as we got closer to shore the swells subsided as we approached the dock.

Back on terra firma, we met our tour guide who walked us through the touristy section to board our tour bus.  After leaving the port area we could see Monterey’s natural rocky coastline, unobstructed views of the Pacific Ocean and the wildlife of the peninsula.

Our first stop was at Bird Rock and Seal Rock; and, as the name implies, the avian or bird population sits on Bird Rock (pelicans & cormorants jockey for space) while the seals and sea lions sit on Seal Rock.  The seals and sea lions caan be heard barking in the distance.  Both populations respect their boundaries and do not encroach upon each other.  Occasionally, sea otters peek their heads above water as they nestle and rest on top of the floating kelp forests.  The kelp forests are an ecosystem of their own as the sea otters feed on mollusks there.

Next stop was a photo op of the iconic Lone Cypress, which sits on a prominent rocky outcrop into the Pacific Ocean.  We were lucky that there was not a large crowd there and were able to take our time to get a good photo.  After a short drive, we arrived at the world-famous Pebble Beach Golf Club where we had free time to roam the grounds and take pictures.

Our last stop was at Carmel-by-the-Sea – an idyllic European-style village with local art galleries, antiques, designer boutiques, unique al fresco restaurants, and quaint architecture along its picturesque Ocean Avenue.  After walking up and down Ocean Avenue “window shopping” I decided to walk down to the beach and take some photos.  I enjoyed the sleepy ambiance of a beautiful village that has retained its small-town feel in spite of its world renown.

Then back to the ship (the tender ride was a lot smoother that this morning) to get ready for the penultimate sailaway and dinner.

Today’s Freeze Frames:

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 1 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 2 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 3 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 4 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

 

17 Mile Drive & Carmel 5 of 21 - Rugged Coastline

 

*** Monterey, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

 

San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Seaman's World War II Memorial

 

Cargo Traffic Leaving Oakland Bay

Cargo Traffic Entering Oakland Bay

San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Land’s End 1 of 2

Land's End 2 of 2

Russian Orthodox Church (Many Miles South of Sitka, Alaska)

Golden Gate Bridge From Vista Point

San Francisco & Oakland Bay Bridge From Vista Point

*** San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Golden Gate Park 8 of 9

Golden Gate Park 9 of 9 Verdi Monument

Cliff House & Pacific Views 1 of 3

Cliff House & Pacific Views 2 of 3

Cliff House & Pacific Views 3 of 3

*** San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Golden Gate Park 3 of 9

Golden Gate Park 4 of 9 John Philip Sousa Monument

Golden Gate Park 5 of 9

Golden Gate Park 6 of 9

Golden Gate Park 7 of 9

 

*** San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued:

 

 

View From Twin Peaks 5 of 7

View From Twin Peaks 6 of 7

View From Twin Peaks 7 of 7

Golden Gate Park 1 of 9

Golden Gate Park 2 of 9

*** San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Sojourn 2018 B2B Alaska and America’s Gold Coast Vol. 15 #15 – San Francisco, CA

 

A cruise call at San Francisco begins and ends with a transit under the Golden Gate Bridge, one of the world’s most photographed structures.  The city itself is a compact metropolis, easily navigated by visitors.  The waterfront Embarcadero stretches from Fisherman’s Wharf along the Bay side with finger piers varying from closed to popular public attractions such as Pier 39’s restaurants, shops and galleries.  The Ferry Building’s visible tower marks the center, and holds a permanent Farmer’s Market with fresh produce, seafood, cheeses as well as restaurants.

The traditional Italian North Beach section is an easy walk away, as is the large and bustling Chinatown.  The decommissioned military installation of the Presidio is now a breezy national park, with tremendous views of the bridge, the Bay, Alcatraz island and charming Sausalito on the far shore.

 

The city’s Golden Gate Park is a destination in itself, holding a sprawling DeYoung Art Museum, a classic Victorian-era Conservatory of Flowers, and the California Academy of Sciences housing a large aquarium, a planetarium and a natural history museum.

Today, I took the 5.75-hour San Francisco & Sausalito tour.  We discovered few of the highlights of the City by the Bay on a panoramic drive that took us from the top of Twin Peaks, out to the crashing Pacific Coast. Across the Golden Gate Bridge and to quaint Sausalito in Marin County.

From the pier we traveled along the Embarcadero and up famous Market Street to the top of Twin Peaks.  Of the 42 hills in San Francisco, Twin Peaks offers the city’s most spectacular views.  The almost identical summits, Noe and Eureka, rise approximately 922 feet above the city and was able to see the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz & Berkley.

Next, we went to the lush Golden Gate Park, San Francisco’s enormous arboreal front yard where we had free time to go exploring!  Next stop was the Cliff House, situated a few blocks north from the ocean front end of the Golden Gate Park and we had time to enjoy the excellent views of the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Gate Nation Recreational Area.

Then crossed the iconic Golden Gate Bridge (celebrating its 80^th year in 2017) and then took a photo stop at Vista Point, and from here, a short drive brought us down into Sausalito.  Reminiscent of Saint Tropez on the French Riviera, Sausalito is a quaint artists’ colony.

We then had free time to go exploring and have lunch before returning to the ship.  After walking around for a while, I decided to have lunch at the Napa Valley Burger Company.  In addition to about 10 – 12 burger selections, the menu included appetizers, soups & salad, seafood and chicken and beef dishes.  I chose the closest burger option to Seabourn, the Top Sirloin, but opted out of French fries and had homemade coleslaw and fresh fruit and it was very good but the burger was not quite as good as Seabourn.  In all fairness, Seabourn burgers and cheeseburgers are made from ground Filet Mignon, a better cut over Top Sirloin.

After leaving Sausalito, we made the return trip on the Golden Gate Bridge and back to the ship.

Today’s Freeze Frames:

Alcatraz

View From Twin Peaks 1 of 7

View From Twin Peaks 2 of 7

View From Twin Peaks 3 of 7

View From Twin Peaks 4 of 7

*** San Francisco, CA Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Floatplane & Solo Kayak Heading Home

 

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Victoria Harbor 3 of 5 Helicopter Landing

Victoria Harbor 4 of 5 Medevac Chopper

Victoria Harbor 5 of 5

Ruby Princess "Wet Dock" Refurbishment 1 of 2

Ruby Princess "Wet Dock" Refurbishment 2 of 2

***Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

 

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Hatley Park Gardens 4 of 5

Hatley Park Gardens 5 of 5

Hadley Castle Facing Olympic Mountains

Victoria Harbor 1 of 5

Victoria Harbor 2 of 5

 

***Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post***

Sojourn 2018 B2B Alaska and America’s Gold Coast Vol. 15 #14 – Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

 

Stunning Structures in the Inner Harbor area such as the Parliament Buildings and the Empress Hotel indelibly impress visitors with Victoria’s English heritage.  The city’s foundation by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1843 set the imperial British tone that is reinforced today by stately homes and charming tearooms, the elaborately formal Butchart Gardens, colorful horse trolleys and red double decker busses.

Yet, the city boasts a wealth of First Nations heritage and the second largest Chinatown anywhere.  During the Gold Rush era, fully half the population was Chinese.  Thunderbird Park displays the iconic totem poles of the Coast Salish, and further cultural artifacts and natural history features are displayed in the impressive Royal British Columbia (BC) Museum.  Museums and galleries vie for attention, from general interest to specialized collections such as the BC Aviation Museum, the Maritime Museum or the center displaying some 160 works of Canada’s famous wildlife painter Robert Bateman.

Culinary curiosity can be satisfied by the dim sum palaces of Chinatown, any number of sedate Edwardian tearooms or even the August surroundings of the Legislative Dining Room in the Parliament Buildings.

Today, I forwent Seabourn’s tour offerings and took a private tour.  My Travel Agent is a member of Virtuoso, one of the oldest and most respected global travel associations.  Since this Vancouver to Los Angeles was a Virtuoso sailing, we were invited to participate in a special shore event.  If the shore event does not appeal to the passenger, Virtuoso offers a shipboard credit.  Hence, I selected the approximately 7-hour private motor coach tour highlighting Victoria and Vancouver Island’s wine growing country, the Cowichan Valley.

We started with a brief city tour to see the Inner Harbor with the Parliament and Empress Hotel reigning over the Harbor as well as Chinatown before leaving the city behind.

After a short drive to the Westshore for a visit to Hatley Castle National Historic Site, built by Lord Dunsmuir and today home to Royal Roads University.  I enjoyed hearing about the history, diversity and 565 oceanfront acres with an amazing view of the majestic Olympic Mountains.  After our guide’s explanation, we self-explored Hatley Park with its gorgeous Japanese, Italian and rose formal gardens that follows Edwardian design, old-growth forest and a protected migratory bird sanctuary.  While walking, there were two peacocks and the male peacock had to show off his feathers and strut his stuff!

Our guide, who was very informative and had worked there many years, was able to bring us inside the main building to see a raucous class of Chinese students having a good time and to see some of the areas where Lord Dunsmuir’s family lived.  Prior to becoming Royal Roads University, the site was a Naval Academy where Cadets trained to serve in the Royal Canadian Navy.  In the gardens there was a memorial to the men who died while serving in World War II.  Then our Guide took us down in “the basement” where the small museum was located and consisting of artifacts and hand-written letters written by Lord Dunsmuir’s family, the Military section and the current day Royal Roads University memorabilia.

Departing Victoria, we then drove to Cherry Point Estate Vines.  This 24-acre vineyard is the second largest on Vancouver Island and consists of grapevines that flourish in Cherry Point’s microclimate (the humidity is carried ashore right to the vineyard!).  Ten main varieties and eight limited varieties are planted including Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Zweigelt, Epicure and Cabernet Libre, Pinot Noir, Agria, Ortega, Seigerrebe, and Castel.  Blackberry bushes surround the vineyard.

While waiting for the Vintner to return from the vineyard, his wife went looking for him.  About 10 minutes after she returned, Javier rode in on his bicycle.  With his French beret, everyone pretty much agreed that this guy was “Old School” and that was a good sign. During the tour of the vineyard, Javier showed us the specialized mechanical equipment used to remove the grapes from the vines without damaging them.  Most Vintners press the grapes right after picking but Javier does not, he allows them to ferment in his proprietary mixture for several weeks (or months? I can’t remember for sure).  He says that they generally do not press the grapes as this can have a negative impact on the wines taste, so he sells them to other Vintners. Wow!!

Next, was the wine tasting where several passengers purchased wine to be shipped home and a wonderful 3-course lunch that was excellent and enjoyed by all.  I had to eat with much restraint as I had a dinner reservation in The Grill by Thomas Keller several hours away.

We then returned to Victoria and concluded the city tour by traveling part of the scenic Marine Drive through the prestigious Uptown and British-looking Oak Bay residential areas. We stopped at Beacon Hill Park to see Mile Zero of the Trans-Canada Highway and he colorful totem poles before returning to the ship about 4 PM.

When the bus turned into the parking area, I noticed the Ruby Princess was docked on the opposite side of our dock.  Walking towards the Sojourn, I did not see any Ruby Princess tour busses or any passengers on the dock and at first, I could not see a passenger gangway.  After arriving home to my suite and sitting on my balcony I saw a gangway, not for passengers but for crew offloading what appeared to be construction debris.  I then saw crew members working on the verandas and apparent welding (a tarp covering small rows of upper deck verandas for 2.5 decks).

Then the light came on in my head ¾ there were no passengers onboard and the ship was going through a quickie “wet dock” refreshment of the cabins and possibly public spaces.  Then a bunch of special purpose flatbeds arrived with a roof and heavy-duty curtains that ran down both sides of the flatbed and securely locked to transport all the construction waste to the appropriate disposal site.

After sorting all that out, I took a short power nap.  Then I got cleaned up for supper and in my dapper best for the last formal optional evening of the voyage.  When I arrived at The Thomas Keller Grill, I was immediately seated and soon after was presented appetizers to nibble on while I perused the menu.  I ordered the super-chilled iceberg lettuce salad with Applewood smoked bacon, marinated tomatoes and blue chees dressing; lobster thermidor; vanilla ice cream that was akin to soft-serve and simply melted in my mouth.  The ambiance, presentation and meal pacing were superb!  Yum-Yum. J  J

Then, back downstairs to the Grand Salon for the “An Evening with Sir Tim Rice” and just as good as it was last week!  To atone for my gastronomic indiscretions, I went downstairs to The Club to boogie the night away till the wee hours as the next two days are sea days and the main dining room is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

With my wing-collar formal shirt almost dripping wet, I retired to my suite, did not set my alarm clock for a most restful journey to Seabourn slumber-land.

Today’s Freeze Frames:

Hatley Castle Entrance & Garden

Royal Roads University Dormitory

Hatley Park Gardens 1 of 5

Hatley Park Gardens 2 of 5

Hatley Park Gardens 3 of 5

 

***Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Freeze Frames Continued in Next Post ***

 

Seattle, Washington, Freeze Frames Continued:

 

Dale Chihuly Glass Pioneer 21 of 21

Space Needle Emerges From The Fog & Clouds

 

Seabourn Sojourn

 

The London Eye-esque Great Wheel