ljrfrm
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Posts posted by ljrfrm
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Thank you for posting, we are doing southbound from Seward in September
Your welcome - hope it's great! :)
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Enjoying this excellent review!
Thanks so much. I'll be posting Skagway tonight when I get home.
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Any chance you grabbed pics of the dailies and/or any of the specialty restaurant menus?
I have all the Dailies......can try to post in the next few days. I didn't take any pics of the menus, sorry.
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Dinner was at Four Seasons tonight. We had a reservation for 7:30 and the four of us were seated quickly. I ordered the beef sliders as an appetizer and the Chicken Cordon Bleu for the main course. I had eaten so much beef over the week that it was time to veer off course. I didn't expect to like to Cordon Bleu as much as I did, but honestly, it was delicious. Although I don't think I was hungry at all when we got there, I managed to eat it all. Of course, the Riesling (bottomless, they kept filled without me even asking) helped to wash it all down. I ordered the bread pudding for dessert - which was also very good. It would be the only time this week we ate at the Four Seasons - but we definitely enjoyed it.
After dinner we planned to go listen to music at Windjammer. I have to say, we thought the guy there was terrible. I'm not usually picky at all - but he was just not good. So we wandered to Dazzles for the Movie Trivia instead. I am SO thankful we did, it was the most hilarious thing I've ever seen in my 9 cruises I've done. Basically, the cruise staff acted out snippets of movies and we had to guess what movie. Was it hard? No. We got all 21 out of 21. BUT, we laughed so hard the entire time. I think it was so much fun for us because they were having so much fun while performing. And then there was Dan (Olsson) our Cruise Director. This was his first sailing on the Sun and he had never seen this before. He was seeing it for the first time with us. And his reaction was classic - he was laughing so hard along with us. They said they are hoping this may go fleetwide -I hope so. I'd love to see it again - and I'm sure many others will love it to. Although I enjoyed the different game shows over the week, they are always the same. It was so nice to have something new - and it was great to laugh so hard.
We left Dazzles and walked around a bit and went outside to check things out. We saw a cruise ship stopped in the distance. It wasn't moving. We wondered what the scoop was - I was assuming all was fine or else we wouldn't have chugged on by without helping. But what was up? We saw an NCL officer walking in front of us and asked her what was going on. Inquiring minds want to know. She immediately got on her phone and made a call to ask for us. So, the scoop was that it was an HAL ship going to Glacier Bay the next day. As it couldn't enter before a certain time, it was stopped and wasting time. All was well - it was just hanging out.
We went back to our room, read the Freestyle Daily for the next day, met our new towel animal friend and read a bit of my book. Tomorrow - Skagway, and an early day. I put another room service request out to get my morning started - and off to bed we went.
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Our next stop was the Macaulay Salmon Hatchery. Although it is free to visit, the tour cost $5 per person. We thought it was well worth it - and found it very interesting. Coming from someone who hates to eat fish and can't stand the smell of them, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.
The tour itself probably only lasted about 10-15 minutes but we stayed and wandered for awhile after. Once finished, we decided we had gone way too long without any alcohol and headed over to the Alaskan Brewing Company. Yum. The guys ordered flights and tried 4 types while I just had one (which they gave to me for free.....score! Was it the UBP??)
Time to head downtown. It was fairly easy for us to find parking, and we wandered and shopped for a bit. As any good tourist would do, we ended our day at the Red Dog Saloon. What fun!! I usually don't get too into the touristy type bars but we found the old guy singing in there hilarious. Of course, at one point I had to Facetime my son in so he could listen to the dirty songs and watch his dad drink a Duck Fart. The perfect way to end a perfect (well, minus a broken down car, which was just a minor deviation from perfection) day.
We walked back to where we parked the car and drove it back to the rental car place next to the ship. How convenient to be right there! We went back on the ship, with my friend still carrying 3-4 bottles of Dr. Pepper. As we went through security, we told them she had the sodas. Honesty is the best policy, right? They told her that was fine and off she went. Ladies and Gentlemen, Dr. Pepper is now on board! They were happy campers!!
Once inside, we went to up Las Ramblas. Sangria Time! After some appetizers and more sangria, we headed back to our cabin to see what daily treat was left today. Clearly, we weren't eating enough yet. Good thing dinner wasn't for another hour!! Plenty of time to digest!
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The rental car was $67.85 for the day. Not bad divided by 4 people. The car we were given seemed fine. It didn't look new, but was in decent condition. We piled in and we were on our way!
Our first stop was Mendenhall Glacier. We had a map and directions I printed out from my research (see, I really am usually prepared!!) and it was very easy to find. How hard is it to lose a big glacier, right? We pulled into the parking lot and looked for a spot. It was full! The guys dropped us off and went in search of parking. It was not a problem at all......there was another parking lot just up the road very close. Once parked, we walked over to check out the glacier. We took the path to Nugget Falls, which was a short easy walk away. Both were amazingly beautiful and impressive. SO worth going to see!!!
Despite the full parking lot, it wasn't overly crowded. Yes, there were people everywhere, but it never felt crowded. We walked back towards the entrance and ran into a friend:
After spending a few more minutes posing with the glacier for some photos, we walked back to our car. We decided to skip the visitor center as we had places to go and people to see. Hopefully we didn't miss anything extraordinary there.
We took the quick walk back to our car. As we were heading there, several (lots) of buses began to pull up. The cruise ship passengers have arrived! I guess it's good that we made this our first stop! We got to the car, climbed in and turned it on. As the car started, we all looked at each other. "That didn't sound very good". The car sounded like it didn't want to turn on, although it did. We all shrugged, sat back and went on our way.
We notice we passed a Safeway store previously. We decided to stop to buy some lunch fixings. We bought some crab legs, crackers, cheese and grapes. Our friend bought some Dr. Pepper bottles and we all got water. As we were checking out, we chatted with the cashier about where we should go eat our lunch. She gave us some great ideas!
We got back to the car and prepared to head out. The car wouldn't start! Nothing. It was dead. Although the initial thought was it might be the battery, we then guessed it was the starter. We all just stared at each other for a moment - our amazing day was at risk. My friend pulled out the paperwork for Juneau Rental Cars and we realized their main office was just 1 mile from where we were. She called them and they immediately sent someone out to us. We weren't hard to spot. Safeway parking lot. 4 tourists. Sad looks on the faces. And then the car!
As frustrated as we were, I have to admit that they were there for us within 5 minutes. After the cables failed to jump start the car, Mr. Juneau Car Rental agreed with us that it wasn't the battery (duh) and immediately called over to someone else. He told them we were on our way and they had to have another car ready for us STAT. Five minutes later we were there, and honestly, about 2 minutes after that we were on our way in another car - a larger car - so we probably lost about 15-20 min max. I can't say I was happy with what happened - but what luck to break down right down the street from our replacement car!!
Once we were on the road again, we headed to one of the spots recommended by the cashier. Auke Bay Recreation Area. She told us we would see sea critters there, such as seals, otters or whales, and she told us it was pretty. Sold. We're there. What a perfect spot for our picnic. It was clearly a place many locals enjoy - as there were lots of moms with children there playing in the water. As it was such a beautiful, sunny day, everyone was taking advantage of the weather. The beach itself was rocky, but we so loved it there. They had pavilions with tables, walking paths, and beautiful scenery.
We sat and ate our picnic while watching the children play and paddleboarders do their thing. We then took a walk around the paths. We saw an area that we couldn't get to that looked interesting so asked someone how to get there. She told us this was called Point Louisa and explained how to get there (the paths don't go over there so we had to go by car). We got back into our car and onto the main road and drove just about 3-4 minutes and turned into Point Louisa. What a find!
It was beautiful. And although we didn't see any whales we did see quite a few cute otters!!! Following a nice walk around Point Louisa we drove by Glacier Gardens. We had planned to go in - another friend who was just there loved it and told us not to miss it. However, we had other places on our itinerary and probably only had one hour to see it. I pulled up the information to see prices, hours, etc. $24.95. Yikes - if we had time that would be fine. I'm sure it was worth it -but would it be if we were rushed for time? I was outvoted - and we moved on to our next stop. Not before I took a photo though outside:
Of course, once I took the photo, I read that sign that told me not to take any photos prior to paying for my ticket. Whoops.
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Before bed last night I put the room service request on the door. Whenever we do room service, we only order a "continental breakfast" so there is no charge. I ordered coffee and chocolate croissants. No need to order too much, as knowing us we'd go to breakfast also. In the past, room service has called when they were on their way. I loved having that heads up. Not this time. Luckily, I had just woken up and put something decent (well semi decent) on. Room service was right on time, and you gotta love those chocolate croissants. The coffee was halfway decent too - so I sat out on the balcony and enjoyed the peace. It looks like it's going to be another beautiful day! Following breakfast at La Cucina (French Toast, crispy bacon and Muesli - never gets old!) I sat on our balcony and watched us pull into Juneau....we were early!!
As I sat on the balcony, I could see Mt. Roberts Tramway that I had read about as well as the shuttle to town go by. We were excited for today - and had the feeling it was going to be an amazing day. I packed us up for the day and returned to the balcony one more time for a few minutes. I notice a very slight sewage smell. This would be the only time I noticed that from our cabin (balcony) and it was so faint it really wasn't a big deal. There would be one or two other times I noticed a slight smell while on the aft stairs (around deck 6) as well.
When it was time for us to meet our friends, we headed out and off the ship. As always, there were no lines at all. We had a rental car booked with Juneau Rental Car. Once we were off the ship we saw the free shuttle picking everyone up and taking them to town. We looked to our right and the rental car office was right there! Had we docked further down we would have needed to take the shuttle or walk a bit -but we lucked out........it was a mere 3 minutes walk and we were in the office and signing papers to start our adventure. Juneau...... here we come!!
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Actually, since we'll be in the same hotel, was it real creamer in the room? Guessing prob not...
Oooh, good question. I'm pretty sure it was half and half - but not 100% sure. I also think they had some other kinds in the lobby also.
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Sorry, I skimmed too fast looking for that info!
I assume it was one of those 4 cup coffee pots that you can use a little filter with (if I wanted to bring my own coffee)?
I'll plan to bring real creamer/milk into room.
If I remember correctly, it was pods.
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Random question...
I see you noted that 9277 currently has a single serve Keurig so that's good to know! Do you recall if the creamer was real creamer or fake creamer (liquid or dried coffee mate or similar)?
Thanks!
The single serving Keurig was at our hotel in Vancouver and not in 9277. They definitely had a coffee pot that we used - but it wasn't a Keurig. I had to bring liquid creamer into the room - they didn't have it. Other than a few mornings, we ordered coffee from room service so also had extra creamers from that.
That said, just FYI - the Holiday Inn had creamers (liquid) with the single serving Keurig -and they did a great job of replacing not just the K cups but the liquid creamers daily.
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Once we said goodbye to our friendly Ketchikan welcoming committee (AKA shuttle bus driver) we walked over to Creek Street. I loved it. Such a cute and fun area!!
We walked around for awhile and my friend bought some new Pandora charms. I was tempted but held off on any major purchases other than t-shirts for my children, and one for me. My husband bought a rain jacket. Once our feet told us we were done for the day, we headed back to the ship, past the Cannabis store and back onto the ship. I'm used to Carribean ports and NCL out in front of the ship with towels, drinks, music and love. Getting back to port this time was a surprise, there was nada. But, I guess with the iffy weather always that makes sense - so no biggie.
We washy-washied and went through the security scanner and dropped our bags off at our room. Side note: When you buy something, you get some cool reusable shopping bags. Cool. Anyhow, once the bags were dropped off, we met our friends at the pool. I read for awhile, of course made use of my UBP and decided to make use of this time to check out some fleece blankets for our room. You can get these where you check out the towels - we grabbed a few to prepare ourselves for Glacier Bay and any other chilly times on our balcony. I was so glad to see we could do this. You can also ask your steward if that's easier.
We stayed at the pool through sailaway and then decided to head up to the room. I sat on the balcony awhile longer and then read. Which again, was code word for napped. Once awake, I showered for dinner which was reserved at Modernos. The food at Modernos was good, although I felt like they could have used a few others walking around with food. That said,we ate well and it was all tasty. I really, really wanted some pineapple and they kept skipping me. It felt like it was a pineapple conspiracy - but then I saw the hostess walk by and I told her I really, really wanted pineapple. She came through and I finally had my pineapple fix. Mmmmm. I had several Caipirinhas (specialty drinks) which were very tasty as well. This would be our second specialty dinner - we had one more booked later in the week. I still had another one to use - and I still couldn't figure out where I wanted to go. I was considering NOT using it. I hated it going to waste - maybe they'd let me bank it for my next cruise? So many first world decisions on this trip.............
After dinner we went to Dazzles and got another front row seat. I ordered my after-dinner Gin and Tonic and we watched the Battle of the Sexes. We then went to Windjammer which is where we would end up spending a lot of time. We enjoyed listening to Jason sing there and our favorite bartender Jonathan always took great care of us. Jason was singing music from the 80's and we sang along with him and enjoyed ourselves until he was finished. As was our habit, we headed out to check out the sunset - usually we were at Dazzles or Windjammer at this time, which made it very convenient to go out. This was what we saw tonight:
After, we went back into Dazzles for 70's night for a short while until we headed back to the cabin to read and go to bed. Another friend was waiting for us once we returned:
Tomorrow is Juneau which means we have to wake up and get moving early. Time for bed!!
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Thank you so much for your review! We are leaving next Monday in 9076 and 9077, with a few days in Vancouver as well.
You will love it- and the cabins!! I hope you find this helpful!!
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Ketchikan today!!! Sometime overnight, the time changed - and we went back one hour. The plan was to take advantage of extra sleep, and catch up on a Z or two, even though we were due in to port by 7:00 am. We were jolted awake at 5:30 with a loud rumble and shake. As we had been in an aft cabin before, we knew about the engine noises you get at times. I was just surprised by how loud the rumbling was. I don't remember it like this - maybe the ship is breaking down? Ok, well it wasn't quite that loud, but it was unnerving for a moment when I was in a deep sleep. Anyhow, my husband was not happy at all, and grumbled a bit at the noise before rolling over and trying to go back to sleep. We would hear the rumbling and feel the vibration occasionally on other days, but for some reason, this morning caught us off guard. Was it horrible? No. Would I book an aft cabin again? Heck yes. We both dozed back to sleep, wondering how close were were to docking.
At 6:40 we were once again hearing rumblings and I peeked outside. Land ho!! This was my morning view from the balcony:
We got up and dressed and headed to La Cucina for breakfast. We were once again seated by the window, which allowed me to get another view of beautiful Ketchikan:
Ok, so maybe not so beautiful, but it's nice to know there's a Cannibus shop across the street........just in case!! I ordered Eggs Benedict for breakfast and "crispy" bacon and of course had my Muesli. It was a delicious breakfast and we left satisfied. Carlos was there and checked in with us. We told him we're doing great, and we didn't need priority disembarkment today. We weren't rushing off - and we were with our friends. That said, we never took advantage of his offer - and we never had any lines while getting off the ship. So nice!
After breakfast I went onto the balcony to read a bit. It was sunny and hot. Such gorgeous weather! Maybe now is the time to comment that our weather was so amazingly perfect on our trip. The entire time!! I agonized over if I needed waterproof shoes, bought a raincoat, wondered which sweatshirts to bring, and wondered what to pack. In the end, we had NO rain during the 11 days we were in Alaska. We had 10 minutes of very slight drizzle on one occasion, and that was it. I don't even know if you could call it drizzle. We also had temperatures between 68-76 throughout. We wore shorts and capris often, and short sleeves with usually just a light sweatshirt "in case". We did have some cooler weather in Glacier Bay - and I wore my fleece and a vest on occasion. But boy, what glorious weather we had. So lucky.
We met up with our friends at 9:30 and headed off the ship. While I spent months planning our excursions, I was a bit unprepared for Ketchikan. I didn't realize this until we were out and about. The plan was to just walk around downtown, Creek Street and I wanted to go see Totem Poles. I knew there was a free shuttle but I didn't have too much information. I also knew there were two places I could see Totem Poles but didn't do too much research on where to go. This was a fail on my part, as I am usually overly organized and enjoy researching everything. Since I wasn't 100% sure where we needed to go for the totem poles, I had just planned on asking at the visitor center or somewhere about specifics.
So, once off the ship we went to the free shuttle. I asked where it was and we were pointed to a small covered area that was the shuttle stop. We waited about 20 minutes and the shuttle came. We were the first ones there and as people started to show up, I stayed standing near the front, because after all, I was the first one there. The shuttle finally came and everyone started trying to rush on. Luckily, we were one of the first ones on, since we had been in the front of the line. The shuttle bus driver finally told people that she was full - nobody was allowed to stand so they'd have to wait for the next one. Those that didn't get on were not happy about this.
There was a lady in the front seat who began to moan about how lazy these cruise ship passengers are. "Why can't they walk? It's not far to downtown". Then she said "I'd be walking if I weren't so hungover". Side note: I don't think she was hungover, but rather she was still drunk!! She and the shuttle bus driver kept talking, making fun of the tourists, and all the stupid questions they ask. The hungover lady evidently worked in the Information/Visitors Center. Meanwhile, I'm thinking "Hello Ms. Shuttle-bus driver and Ms. Visitor Center lady - we can hear everything you are saying!!!". Evidently, they also didn't like that the tourists all take the free shuttle and take up all the room from those that live here. Nice way to make us feel welcome!
She did have one point, and that is the Creek Street/downtown area is very close to where we docked. As we pulled up to one of the stops downtown, I went up and asked her about the Totem Poles. While on the bus and looking at the few notes I did have, I told her we think we want to go to the Totem Bight State Park. She did tell me where to catch the Silver Line bus that goes out there and we got off. Although we were only on the shuttle for about 5 minutes, it was quite interesting.
We went into a gift shop for a few minutes and then went out to the bus stop for the park. The bus to Totem Bight State Park costs $1 each direction. We didn't have to wait long and soon it came. The driver was very personable and welcoming and we asked him to let us know when we got to the park. It took us around 30 minutes to get to the park - I did enjoy seeing the Ketchikan Airport (so small) and we saw where Walmart was (just in case anyone needs to pick something up - it was a stop on the way).
Once there, we spent time walking around the park and had a nice time. I don't know if we made the right decision to go there and not Saxman, but it was nice. I probably would choose something closer the next time - but live and learn.
We saw totem poles though:
The bus driver told us what time he'd be back for pick up so we didn't have too long to wait on the other end. The bus was fairly full when it came by so we were standing in the back. About halfway back, he announced that he wasn't actually heading back downtown and for those cruise passengers that want to go back to the docks they needed to transfer on to the free shuttle. I only half-heard his announcement and wasn't really paying attention. But, multiple other passengers started getting off at the next stop and we followed. Why? I don't know. It turned out the bus did go into town - just not back to the cruise ships.....guess next time we should listen! No worries, we knew we could just take the free shuttle from there. And, who comes driving along.......our friendly (not) free shuttle driver, still moaning and groaning about tourists.
We gave her a big friendly thank you when we got off downtown and we were on our way. Off to Creek Street and checking out the rest of the town.
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At some point after lunch, we went to play Trivia and then to the casino. We are not big casino-goers, mainly because of the smoke. As usual, the casino was a bit smokey but it wasn't as bad as it could be. We watched our friend play slots for about 15 minutes and use up her money and admired the skills of a blackjack player or two. This visit would be our only casino experience this trip. At least it saves me money!
We went back to our room to read and relax and found some canapes had been delivered while we were out. Yum. It's a good thing, by this time it had been probably almost 2 hours since I'd eaten. A travesty!! The sun was shining on our deck and it was very comfortable out there. I sat out for awhile and then came back in to read in bed. Carlos the Concierge came by to see how we were doing and if we needed anything. We loved him - such a nice, friendly man -we enjoyed chatting with him on and off throughout the week. We told him we were good and not needing anything at this time. I went back into bed to read some more which of course turned into a nap. Once awake, we showered and dressed for dinner.
Tonight we had reservations at Le Bistro. We booked with two promos - which we chose the UBP and 3 specialty dinners. I reserved the 3 nights at 90 days out. Literally.....at 12:01 am when we were 90 days out so I could have my pick up days/times. That said, when I got my key card, it said "UBP" on it and then also that I had 4 specialty dinners. I don't know if I somehow got an extra one, or if I had it all along and didn't realize it. But, all week I debated about where/when to add the other dinner. Our friends didn't have the plan, and were only joining us at one specialty restaurant later in the week. This night, I had Le Bistro reserved for 6:30 (just the two of us), so once showered and ready, off we went.
I ordered the Beef Tenderloin which was delicious. I always get the French Onion Soup as well. To drink, I started with one of the specialty drinks (French Kiss) and then moved on to wine. We were so stuffed full there was no way I could do dessert. Or could I? I ordered a Creme Brulee and at it all!!
After dinner we went to Dazzles to grab some chairs so we could watch The Newlywed Game. There was a string quartet playing so we sat and listened as we drank our Gin and Tonics. While we wouldn't usually go to listen to classical music, it was very nice and relaxing. They soon finished and the crowds started to build for the game. I say "crowds" but honestly, the ship never seemed too crowded. In fact, my husband kept saying that the ship must be half empty. I assured him it wasn't, I had noticed the last week when looking online that it was mostly sold out. But really, other than the pasta/pizza area and one part of the Garden Cafe, we never saw a line. And the restaurants never looked full. Dazzles did fill up for the popular events, but we never had trouble finding chairs. We also usually always ended up in the front row, with arriving only 5-10 minutes prior to it starting. This was very different from the Atrium shows on the Escape.
I always enjoy watching The Newlywed Game and although the questions get old because they don't change, it's always a good time with the contestants that can make it all pretty hilarious. I think it also depends on the host - and how much they "play" with the contestants to make it funny. The best host we've ever seen is Andre - who at the time was the Assistant CD on the Dawn, and then later we saw him do it again on the Escape. He is simply the best at it and if you ever get the chance to see him host, don't miss it. This time was good - but it wasn't one of those roll on the floor laughing game shows. I think this was more because of the contestants picked vs. the host. We laughed but it wasn't so funny unfortunately.
We left Dazzles following the show and quickly headed to the theater to catch the We Will Rock You show. This would be the only production show we saw all week. I swear I've seen this show before on another ship (or something very similar), but they did a nice job with it and we were entertained. Of course, the Gin and Tonic may have helped too.
After the show finished we went out on deck. It was 10:45 pm and still light out. Whales!!! We found more whales - hard to miss with everyone pointing and taking photos!! We then caught another beautiful sunset. A short while later we headed back to our cabin. We had a friend waiting for us when we got there:
I spent some time reading the new Freestyle Daily and then my book and later drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow - Ketchikan!!!
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Tuesday was Fourth of July!! We woke up around 7:40 as I wanted to make sure we had enough time to relax and eat a leisurely breakfast before the scheduled Meet and Greet. After spending a little time on our balcony, we went to La Cucina for breakfast. I ordered the French Toast and bacon and went to the buffet for some Muesli while I was waiting for it. I only eat Muesli when cruising - and it's definitely a cruising must for me!! The French Toast was delicious as always, but the bacon wasn't crispy. I soon learned that all I needed to do was order "crispy bacon" and it would come out perfectly.
While eating breakfast, we looked out the window and saw this:
Not sure who they were dropping off or picking up, but I watched them pull up along with us, and then a few minutes later ride away. All of a sudden, everyone started pointing and I looked out again. Whale!!! Yes, we had a friend following along with us. It was pretty cool - and definitely just the first of so much wildlife we saw on this trip. Loved it!
Soon it was about 10:40 and time to start heading to our Meet and Greet. I've read that the Alaskan Meet and Greets and Roll Calls in general aren't as well attended as other cruises. We ended up with probably 30-35 (just a guess) attendees and as always, we had a great showing from NCL officers. They lined up, introduced themselves and spent a few minutes with Q&A. While they weren't with us for too long, they did a nice job and definitely didn't rush away quickly like I've seen on other ships. That said, they also didn't mingle and chat with us like they do on the Escape.
Once the officers left we had a gift exchange. This was actually a lot of fun and we had great participation. Once the gift exchange was finished, people started to leave. While a few were still there chatting, we left as we wanted to go to the Star Spangled Banner Sing Along in the Atrium. This was a fun way to acknowledge it was the fourth of July. They brought in one of the production singers and she led us through the anthem. This came after:
We went to the Atrium bar and ordered a Mr. Worldwide. For some reason, we started calling the drink "Mr. Wonderful" and for the rest of the cruise, everytime we went to the Atrium bar, the bartender asked us if we wanted another Mr. Wonderful. "Why yes, I do please"!! Following my date with Mr. Wonderful, we went out to the pool and watched the Hot Dog eating contest. That and the drink definitely gave us the munchies again so we went into the Garden Cafe to eat. Again,this is so unlike me - I never eat in the Garden Cafe. But, the burger hit the spot yesterday so I did a repeat, and got a cheeseburger and fries. I brought them back out to the pool and ordered a margarita to go with them. Yum.
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When we first got into the cabin, we had several things on our bed waiting for us. The first was the Freestyle Daily for Day 1. I quickly perused it to plan for the rest of the day. We had a Latitudes card welcoming us back, and then there was another paper from Group Events confirming the Meet and Greet I scheduled for the following day. While I'm definitely not the hostest with the mostest, I enjoy coordinating these events as it gives me the opportunity to meet others on board. This time, we found a letter inviting us to eat breakfast and lunch at La Cucina with the suite guests, as well as utilize the Concierge services. While I didn't offer to organize the Meet and Greet for this perk (and previously didn't receive it when I also organized one), it was a nice surprise.
Soon it was time for the muster drill. We figured out where we needed to go and headed over there. Both trips on the Escape, we mustered in the theater. It was comfortable and nice to be able to sit and relax instead on lining up outside on deck. This time, we were back to the old-fashioned lineup. It only lasted about 15 minutes but I can imagine it might have been hard for someone with difficulties standing. Of course, everyone was in a good mood and there was lots of joking and talking while waiting for the official instructions to start. Once finished, we went back to the pool and met our friends. I think there might have been another drink involved as well. Soon we were on our way!!
We spent Sailaway on Deck 12 and enjoyed sailing under Lion's Gate Bridge. A recent poster shared an outside view of our ship sailing under the bridge - fun to see the other perspective. For us, as we sailed under, we noticed quite a few people on the bridge waving to us. We of course waved back and smiled like celebrities!
We had dinner reservations at 7 Seas for the four of us. Our other friends on board had just been seated as well, and we asked to sit near them if possible. We were put right next to them which was nice, and I appreciate them being able to accommodate our request. The dining room only appeared about half full - which is something we'd notice off and on throughout the week. I ordered a salad, Prime Rib and Pistachio Creme Brulee and enjoyed it all. The 2 glasses of Riesling helped wash it down. We never had any problems throughout the week ordering drinks with dinner and in fact, there were times that we got refills without even asking!
Following dinner, we went to Dazzles for "Sing it if you know it". Once there, we were able to get drinks quickly, and I ordered a Gin and Tonic. We were sitting in the front, and as I tend to know every word to every song (the unfortunate thing is I can't carry a turn) I ended up participating along with others. Unfortunately, my team lost - but it wasn't for lack of trying. I think we were robbed a few times - but I won't hold a grudge!
The sun set for us in Vancouver shortly after 10 pm. Sometime this night, we decided to step out quickly to look at the sunset. I'm so glad we did! I have to say, we saw the most amazing sunsets on this cruise - although some of them didn't happen until almost midnight, I would highly recommending making this a priority each night. You won't be sorry. Here's what we saw when we stepped out of Dazzles (note, this photo is untouched - it was really this amazing:
After enjoying the sunset for awhile, we all went up to the Sports Bar. We hadn't planned to eat anything and I don't think any of us were hungry, but the next thing you know, I found myself with an order of wings. I somehow managed to stuff them in, and then we headed back to our room.
Initially when we got to our room for the first time, I had a "Happy Birthday" cake on the table. There was a card from the person who sent it to me, wishing me a happy birthday (my birthday was the day after the cruise ended) and stating she had bought me the "Birthday Package". The package comes with balloons and streamers which weren't there. The room evidently was decorated while we were at dinner, as when I got back to the room, this is what I walked into:
When I met our room steward the next day, he told me that the reason I didn't have the decorations along with the cake initially was because they decorated the wrong room. "No problem at all" I told him, although I do think that the other person was probably surprised to see their room decorated, especially if nobody had a birthday. Our friends actually had a case of water delivered to them accidentally as well. They were told the could keep it. Not a bad mistake for them at all.
Once back in the room, I read the Day 2 Freestyle Dailies and we went to bed. A successful first day for sure!!!
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Loving your review even more now. Not only did you stay in the same hotel we will be (that few others on here seem to) but we will be in the same cabin (9277) in Sept! Your experience after boarding (hang out, drink, munch, etc.) sounds perfect and may just end up being what we do.
Wow!!! Can't wait to hear about your cruise. You will love it!!!
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We are in the same room (9277) next month. I'd love to see some pics. Thanks in advance!
Sorry. I didn't really take any pics of the cabin this time. But, although an old post, the cabin still looks basically the same as in this thread. Look at post #13.
The TV is updated and the sofa is recovered - same striped curtains though! :)
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Usually we go to the main dining room for lunch on embarkation day. I'm not necessarily one that enjoys the Garden Cafe. It's not that I don't find the food ok, I just prefer a sit down restaurant and not having to find a table, go through the buffet line, etc. I usually enjoy NCL's lunch menus in the dining room so I just tend to do that. We never quite made it to the dining room though. We were enjoying ourselves around the pool and as we were making use of the UBP, we started getting the munchies. My friend went and got multiple sandwiches on a plate and brought them out. I had a hamburger craving though so went and got a cheeseburger and fries. It was really good - or at least tasted really good after my drinks. We hung out at the pool until we were able to go to our cabins.
They made the announcement at 1:20 that the rooms were ready. We had only carried on one small backpack and my husband had his computer, but we wanted to drop them off and also check out the room. We were staying in cabin #9277 - an aft balcony. I had seen pictures of the room and read about it, but was looking forward to seeing it in person. After my last two cruises on the Escape, I wasn't sure if this room would look old and run down or not.
It turned out we loved the location of the room and definitely enjoyed the aft views. As others have posted before, the bathroom was small for sure! And as I've also read, the shower itself was minuscule - with a shower curtain that was basically up against you. I had read to bring some kind of clothespin or weight to hook onto the bottom so the curtain wouldn't stick to me during the shower. I forgot this - but a sticking shower curtain was not a problem for me during the cruise. The small shower was functional and it was totally fine - albeit small. The sink didn't have much room around it for toiletries but there were plenty of shelves around it. After our Escape Haven upgrade, the bathroom was definitely small - but I really don't have any complaints at all about it. The room itself seemed older but it didn't give a rundown feeling and the updated TV's made it at least a bit more modern. The balcony was roomy enough that our friends were able to sit out there as well with us. We were going to ask our steward to see if there were any extra deck chairs, but we started using the desk chairs (we just brought them in when finished) and that worked well so never got around to the request.
We spent some time unpacking and had no issues finding a place for everything. There were some hooks on the walls which we used for our raincoats, fleeces, and sweatshirts. There were tons of shelves in multiple places, as well as some drawers. We also found we had enough hangers for everything we wanted in the closet. Storage was definitely not an issue for us.
Our friends were staying around the corner from us in an inside cabin - # 9337. My friend came over to our cabin and knocked on the door. "You have to come see our cabin. It's the biggest inside cabin we've ever stayed in". I went over and it was huge. Not only did they have the area with the bed, but over to the left was a huge other part with a full sofa (we had a shorter one) and then the bathroom. If you ever plan for an inside cabin, definitely check this one out!
We went back to our cabin and went onto the balcony. We looked to our left and saw that the suite to the side of us had a huge balcony compared to ours (to be expected). A man was on the balcony and I told him "Your deck is bigger than our deck". He laughed and invited us over to check out their cabin (Penthouse Suite 9276). We actually have a connecting door with their suite. We took them up on their offer and went next door to check the cabin out. It was nice with the bedroom and then living room - with a Jack and Jill type bathroom between the two rooms. After touring the suite, we bid farewell to our neighbors and went back to our room to relax for a bit until it was time to head out for the muster drill.
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We woke up on Monday - I love embarkation day! All the waiting, planning, preparing and finally it was time. My husband ran across the street Starbucks and brought back another scone - those things are sure good. I made coffee in the room with the single serving Kuerig they provided. They did a great job of keeping both the K-cups and creamers stocked. After our small breakfast (saving room for the ship!) and some last minute packing (or shoving) of items, we were ready to go!
Our friends got a taxi from their hotel and came by to pick us up and the four of us headed to Canada Place around 9:30 am. The ride cost us $21, but that was probably because the taxi went between two hotels and had to wait for us to come downstairs. The taxi knew right where to go for us to drop off our luggage and soon we were doing just that.
Once our luggage was dropped off we went over to the Sky Train to return our Compass Passes. For the life of us we couldn't figure out where to go to return them. We found an information phone in the Sky Train station and picked it up to see who would answer. We asked them about returning the card. Evidently in the building attached to the station is the office. However, because Saturday was Canada Day, the office was closed. Bummer. Our friends were in the negative and only had about $2.50 owed back to them between the two cards. My husband had $4.00 or so left over and I had my full $6.00. They did tell us that we could mail them in for the refund, but as I type this I realize this is something I haven't done yet. I may just hang on to them for the next time (hopefully) I am there - or if I have any friends that go. I'm still glad we got the card - but probably next time I would put less money on it and spend it down so I didn't need to worry about the refund.
We left the Sky Train station and walked back across the street to Canada Place to check in. The lines weren't long at all, but instead of just waiting in a longer line like I'm used to at other ports, they had us sit in chairs in the order we arrived. We were able to fill out our Health Questionnaire while we were waiting. They then had the worker excuse us section by section and move into the line to check in. After about a 5-10 minute wait, we were told to go get in line. The line itself was short, and after another 5 minutes wait we were checking in.
Passports - check. Photo - check. Credit card - check. It was quick and painless and the next thing we knew, we were sitting in the larger waiting area for boarding. They came around with juice and water and we waited for about half an hour maybe. Around 11:40 pm they began boarding. The last few cruises on the Escape we boarded by groups. This time, we had been seated in order and we were given instructions on when to stand up and follow each other in an "orderly" line. Yes, we were asked to stay orderly and not rush ahead of anyone else. They asked nicely - and it was so nice that everyone listened and there was no rushing ahead of anyone else. A bit different from the Escape and rush to Vibe.
Before we knew it, we were sitting by the pool with our first yummy beverage in hand! While by the pool waiting for the room to be ready, I had two mojitos, a pina colada and a mud slide. Are you seeing the trend? The UBP would definitely be my friend this week.
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I definitely have an old brain now because I totally forgot something we did while at Canada Place on Saturday (Canada Day) which was so much fun. I bought tickets online a few weeks earlier for FlyOver Canada. I had decided that Saturday made the most sense for it since I knew we would be there that day. I bought the time Fastlane tickets for 2:00 - 2:30 pm timeslot. They were $22.95 as opposed to $27 in person. It costs the same for the Fastland tickets are regular ones so I figured why not. The good thing is if you miss your time, you can still use the tickets - you just don't get the Fastlane perk.
Now for us - I don't know how much of a perk it was. For as crowded as it was at Canada Place that day, there wasn't much of a line for the Flyover ride. But, there were two different lines and I can see how going at your "set time" would pay off.
We arrived right at 2 pm and we had probably a 10 minutes wait to go in. The ride itself took about 20 minutes but part of that was the pre-ride film, safety info and going in to get seated. The ride itself was a little less than 10 minutes. We loved it!! It was fun and beautiful to see. We actually had just as much fun after the ride also. They had an area where you can dress up, put on hats, be a Mountie, put on flannel, etc. and take pictures within a "FlyOver" mini stage. We got some great pictures and had a lot of fun. And it was a nice break from everything else we were doing that day.
While we initially debated about doing this since it was a bit pricey for the short time. But, it was a blast and I would highly recommend it.
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Sunday was our last full day in Vancouver. We had originally planned to spend the morning in Stanley Park. I wish we had more time there, but we really wanted a leisurely morning to relax after such a busy Saturday. Since we had a last minute trip to Stanley Park the night before, we decided we'd skip it and just chill for a bit. We had a nice breakfast at the hotel restaurant and relaxed in our room and spent some time talking to our children.
I had registered us for another free walking tour this afternoon on Granville Island. We went downstairs to the hotel lobby and asked our "concierge" the best way to get there. It turns out that the Aqua Bus stop was just a 10 minute walk down the street. This is when we realized that this hotel really was in a good location - as we pretty much walked to everything. We followed the road down and easily found the stop. We were on Hornby Street which turned out to be a quick (very quick) trip to Granville Island. Like literally, once they shove off you arrive practically. The Aqua Bus also had multiple other stops but we just used it to cross over to the Island. The price was $7 round trip.
Once over on Granville Island we met up with our friends and walked through the market. We then used the map to figure out where the walking tour was leaving from. It turns out it was on the edge of the island - over the bridge actually off the island. Granville Island is actually really not an island - it's a peninsula (geography lesson of the day). Ok, well it used to be an island but it's not anymore.
Our tour group today was much smaller than Friday - with only about ten people in total including the four of us. Our tour guide Eric was great. The tour was supposed to last one hour but ended up lasting 90 minutes. We learned so much about the history of the "island", and quite a bit about many of the stores and cultural events. My friends who didn't take the tour felt like they missed half of what we saw - so I highly recommend it. And the price is right........FREE. (plus tip)
I fell in love with the houseboats on the island - and I heard one is for sale!!
They even make the concrete factory look cute - and check out the strawberry cement truck:
The tour ended in the public market, where we bought a few treats and walked around a bit. We then went to a restaurant behind the market and had a few drinks out on the terrace. It was another beautiful day and it was nice to sit out and watch the boating, kayaking and paddle boarding. Once we finished, we took our return Aqua Bus trip back to the Hornby Street stop.
Here's a photo I took on the way back. To give you an idea how close the two stops are to each other, we are more than halfway across in this shot:
We went back to the hotel and did a bit of packing and organizing for the next day - it was almost cruise day!! We then walked over to Yaletown and ate at The Hub. We had a great dinner there out front on their patio and people watching while eating. A few drinks might have been involved as well. Yaletown is a cute neighborhood with lots of personality. It's a great place to go eat. The restaurant we ate at was right across the street from the Sky Train station - the same station we grabbed the taxi from the first night. It was nice to see it all in daylight. It was also good to confirm our decision of taking a taxi that first night. The walk to Yaletown was a quick 5 minutes, but it was downhill the whole way to the restaurant. Which meant the walk to the Holiday Inn was uphill. Not an issue this night - but with luggage, etc. it might have been a bit more difficult.
Soon we were back in the hotel and happily making plans for boarding the next morning. We wanted to do a load of laundry but didn't have any Canadian Dollars. No worries - the front desk helped us out and cashed out $5 for us and gave us Canadian coins. So, in a way I guess I lied when I said we never took out Canadian money.
Once laundry and last minute packing was finished we headed to bed. We went to sleep with visions of unlimited drinks dancing in our heads! :)
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Once we left the terrace, we decided to walk to Gastown. We still weren't sure what we'd do for the fireworks, but we knew we'd figure it out eventually. It was just about 7 pm at this time, and the fireworks were supposed to be around 10:30. The walk to Gastown wasn't too far, but by this time, my feet were starting to get tired from being out and about all day. Gastown had a great vibe and there were lots of people out and about. We wandered through a few souvenir shops and debated about spending money. Knowing I had lots of vacation left, I chose to just wander but not spend. We saw the Steam Clock which was great. Make sure to be there when it whistles and steams - every quarter of the hour!
By about 8:30 we figured we had to make a decision. We decided to go view the fireworks at Stanley Park, as rumor had it that there would be less people there. A taxi van happened to be driving by so we jumped in. We really didn't know exactly where we were going but figured the taxi driver would know - or if he didn't we could just follow the crowds. He took us to the main entrance of Stanley Park - which was around $12. We got out and then figured we'd walk from there. We followed others we saw walking until we found the area where many people were sitting. It wasn't far from the totem poles - which gave a few of us something to do while we were waiting for darkness and the fireworks show. We sat down next to others who seemed much more prepared than we were. People had chairs, blankets, food, beverages. We had......nada! So, it wasn't such a comfortable wait - but we made the best of it. The weather had been beautiful that day, but it actually started getting chilly. We had about an hour and a half to wait. This was our view:
I have to say this was a long day and I was cold and tired. But, I was up for the challenge and we chatted with others around us while we staked out our spot. This better be good!!
The fireworks show finally started but just before it did, hoards of people came rushing in and stood in front of us. Don't people sit for fireworks in Canada? Or lay down and look up? Guess not. They were completely blocking out view. No problem - we stood along with others and waiting for the show that was about to start. The display finally began and it was......eh.... Don't get me wrong - it was fine, but nothing amazing. It was a fun night but by this time we were cold and tired, and I guess I was expecting more. It's all good though as I was in Canada celebrating Canada Day and about to go on a cruise.
Once the fireworks finished, we knew there was no way we'd get a taxi and the lines at the buses were crazy. SO, we made the decision to walk back to our hotel. It took us about 30 minutes, and while I was exhausted, my feet hurt and my back made me feel like I was 90, it was actually a fun walk. The town was hopping, people were partying and everything was so lively. We made it to the hotel around midnight. Exhausted but happy after a full day of fun. And, we had walked almost 11 miles this day. Surely that would help me work off some of my vacation weight gain, right? (wrong!)
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The bus to Canada Place didn't take any time at all. When we got there it was crowded with red. One of the first things I saw were two men on stilts. At least I think they were on stilts.......unless those Canadian Mounties are taller than I thought they were.
There was a band playing Shania Twain "Man, I feel like a woman" and of course I had to sing along. I'm sure many were thinking "Crazy American who can't carry a tune". It was crowded but not unbearable.
The only time we really had a long line was for the bathroom. Luckily, while we were in line, someone came up to us and told us of a different bathroom in another area where there was no wait. That initial line must have had over 30 women in it. Of course, the men's line was empty, quiet, crickets chirping. But, we left the line and went into the area we were directed to for the other bathroom. As we entered there, we found they had a whole big display up of Canadian military vehicles. It was very interesting and it was too bad that not many realized it was there.
While there, we saw three cruise ships in port. What a day to be there! The Golden Princess, Star Princess and Nieuw Amsterdam were all in port. We pulled up the itineraries and one of the Princess ships was on a 35 or some odd day cruise. Wow, what an itinerary!!! Alaska and Bora Bora on the same trip? Love it! Anyhow - seeing the ships made us even more excited for our upcoming adventure.
We went up to the Tap and Barrel restaurant and put our name on the list to sit outside on the terrace. They told us it would be an hour wait, which was fine - as what else did we have to do. During the wait, we walked around a bit more over to the Olympic Cauldron. They had lit it for the day - so cool. Actually not cool, that thing sure gives off some heat!!!
The men decided they couldn't wait any longer for a beer and found a stand near there to buy a few cold ones. I felt like it might be soon that our table would be ready so went back to the restaurant to sit (and people watch) and wait. So, they called my name and led me to the perfect table overlooking the Sea Planes. What a view!! I texted the others to join me and we spent about 2 hours drinking and eating some pretty delicious appetizers.
Throughout this time we were debating about what to do about fireworks that night. We knew that it would be crowded and we had the perfect spot right there for prime viewing. But, we had over 3 hours more until it was time. We didn't really want to sit there for that long but I just hated to give up the perfect table. Soon the waitress came over and told us that anybody who stayed after 7:00 pm had to pay $20 per person cover charge to watch the fireworks. Hmmmm. I actually contemplated it for a moment but the others nixed the idea right away. SO we paid our bill (giving a big holiday tip to the waitress) and went on our way.
My week on the Sun 7/3-7/10 (including pre/post adventures)
in Norwegian Cruise Line
Posted
The next morning we set our alarms for 6:30 am. Way too early but Skagway was calling!! My husband's alarm went off and mine didn't. Weird. My iPhone alarm is usually so trusty. We both got up and dressed and as he's in the bathroom, I looked at my phone to figure why the alarm didn't go off. My phone said it was 5:30. What? Now - I've had issues on previous cruises with time changes and my phone not updating - so I looked at my tablet and confirmed it was 5:30. That's why it felt like it was the middle of the night. It was. It turned out that darling husband's tablet had the incorrect time - and we were up one hour earlier than needed. Oh well, it gave me time on the balcony to check out views.
This would be the one morning we had breakfast at the Garden Cafe. I figured it made sense since we were on a tight schedule. Then again, after waking up so early - maybe the schedule wasn't so tight after all. We headed up there a little before 7 am. I grabbed some pancakes and bacon and the ever so important coffee. I may have grabbed a few chocolate croissants as well too. While it seemed to be hopping with a lot of people up already, there were plenty of tables the further away from the buffet you went. Breakfast was fine - it's my favorite meal of the day when I travel, so I'm really not picky. I just love drinking my coffee knowing I don't have to go to work. The rest of the food is just icing on the cake.
We were due to arrive at 8 am but arrived early. This would be the one time that our whole group went out together - so we were 8 all together. I booked us with Dyea Dave, which initially had a pick up of 7:45. I wrote them back and told them we weren't arriving until 8. Well, we could have made it - but since we arranged to meet up with our friends at 8, we stuck with that.
After breakfast, we went back to our room and packed up for the day. Today was the day we needed to remember to take our passports. This was the view from our balcony:
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We met up with our friends and headed off the ship. I think today was the day we actually took a photo when getting off. The other days we just said "no thanks". We were told to look for someone in a top hat with a Dyea Dave sign. He was very easy to find. It turns out we had Craig who was wonderful. We thought he was personable, funny, provided the perfect amount of history and information and knew just where to stop for great photos. We did the Emerald Lake tour which was $79 per person. I worked with Kathy to book it, who did a great job of responding to my questions and helping us choose the right tour for our group. We debated between just renting a van so our group would have a private tour - or going on the 16 or 21 person shuttle. In the end, we chose the shuttle because we decided it would be so much easier getting in/out at the stops and the windows were bigger for photos.
Dyea Dave does not require any deposits, unless you are with a group of 8 or more people. Since we all booked together and there were 8 of us, I did have to snail mail them a $200 check. They assured me that it would be returned to me when they pick me up. The first thing Craig did when we met was hand me my check back.
After meeting up with Craig, he took us to the shuttle. We automatically assumed that the shuttle would be full of other passengers. When we got to the shuttle, Craig told us that it was just us, but Kathy told him to grab the larger shuttle as we were hoping to have room (which I did talk to her about - when I decided not to be crammed into a van). How awesome that Kathy took the time to tell Craig this and that we were having our own private tour. 8 people in a 21 person van meant that each one of us had a window. Score! We were taking the White Pass Scenic Railway back in the afternoon, so Craig took us to the train station to pick up our tickets. Craig also made it clear that this would be our last bathroom opportunity for awhile, so we all took advantage of the facilties while there.
Our first stop with Craig:
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Another stop - Bridal Veil Falls:
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Craig knew just the stop for us to watch the White Pass Railway train going by. We had several stops to view beautiful scenery:
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Of course, this stop was a must! As we were taking the train back into Alaska, we made this stop on the way out.
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At some point, we crossed into Canada. We stopped for photos at the "Yukon" sign - along with several other shuttles/vans full of people. Craig actually knew just where we could stand for photos, even though others were standing on the other side taking photos too. He helped us get the right angles and we got some great photos.
Several other stops:
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And, this was a happy surprise:
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Puppies!!!!
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While we were with the puppies, it started to sprinkle. Briefly. For just a few minutes. This would be our one encounter with Alaskan rain. I put my raincoat on....mainly just so I could at least say I used it. Maybe I should have kept the tags on it???
We found the desert......Carcross Desert that is:
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And Emerald Lake. Oh my. So beautiful - pictures don't do it justice:
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Following Emerald Lake we started back and stopped at a truck stop near Carcross and had lunch (don't let the term "truck stop" scare you - I had such a delicious chicken sandwich) and then stopped in Carcross. We had about 30 minutes there to wander into stores and buy some delicious ice cream.
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We stamped our passports while there - so I have now "officially" been in the Yukon.
We met Craig back at the shuttle at the assigned time and headed to Frasier to catch the train back to Skagway. Craig promised he would meet us at the other end and take us either back to the ship or downtown. Once at the Frasier train station, Craig took care of getting our car assignment and then sent us on our way.