Alaska Travelogue on the HAL Zaandam May 2011

[chinita415]

I have learned so much from reading these boards the past 8 months prior to our trip that I wanted to share our experience with you all. I hope this information is useful for those still planning their trip as this is still early in the Alaska season.

 

I will start with Vancouver, then a review of the ship in detail, followed by a recap of each day. I hope I have presented accurate information but please point out any gross errors if you see them. Obviously many things are subjective so please respect my opinions and those of others and I shall do the same. Feel free to ask and answer questions as I want this to be useful for fellow travelers.

 

As you can tell, I can be rather verbose and a bit of a windbag! :rolleyes: I am sure some of you can relate in my quest for logistics and details. As my mentor told me many times, I use it for good and not for evil. :D

 

Background Information

This was a family trip consisting of my sister and I (who are in our 30’s) with our 60-something mom. We are Chinese Americans from California. We have all cruised before a few times on a Yangtze River cruise and to the Caribbean and Bahamas on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity. This was our first time to Alaska and on Holland America.

 

HAL Zaandam: May 15 - 22, 2011

Vancouver, Inside Passage, Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay, College Fjord, Seward

 

Post Cruise:

Kenai Fjord Cruise, Alaska Railroad from Seward to Anchorage, Anchorage

 

Travel to Vancouver

We flew to Vancouver from CA the day before embarkation. The airport was not very full and we passed through customs and baggage claim with ease. We used the ATM just as you exit baggage claim on the left to get CAD. We had initially planned to take the SkyTrain, but since it was raining we decided to take a taxi instead. It was about $35 CAD with tips. The cab driver was not very friendly and did not wear a seat belt and drove haphazardly weaving in and out of lane. He hesitantly helped us with the luggage. At one point the cab smelled like burnt plastic. He opened the window to clear the air. We were glad to make it to the hotel in one piece!

Sheraton Wall Center Vancouver

I used Hotwire to get this hotel. I called the week before to ask for two beds and was pleasantly surprised to find that we were upgraded to the newly renovated North Tower. I had assumed we would be in the older South Tower because of the Hotwire booking. The room was not ready when we arrive at 11am but was ready by 1pm. It was clean and quiet on an upper floor. We had views of downtown and peek a boo views of False Creek. The lobby of the North Tower is very nice with a bar and lounge. The South Tower lobby is very small. Taxi stand is in front of the South Tower. The gym and pool is in a weird location in the conference area between the towers. It was at the bottom of a flight of stairs that were hard to find. I did not feel safe going back there by myself although I saw many people there.

 

Vancouver

We walked down to Granville Island after checking into the hotel. We walked around a bit and grabbed some food for lunch. The walk there was very nice on the Granville Bridge where we had wonderful views of the marinas, downtown, and the surrounding snow covered mountains. I wish I took pictures of the mountain because it was all foggy and covered the next day when we sailed off! We took the #51 bus back to downtown because it started to rain and it took us almost 45 mins to walk over. I had planned to go to Lynn Canal, but we were getting tired after lunch and the increasing rain did not encourage me either. Instead we took a long nap in our room before dinner time. We walked up to Robson St. to stroll the shops. I had to resist not buying anything as they had many cute items! I was heading towards Denman Ave. where I had eaten well on a previous trip. But we stumbled upon Hon’s Noodle House on Robson where we had an excellent last meal of Chinese comfort food before our cruise.

 

Embarkation

We took a taxi to Canada Place without problems. The porters greeted us at the curb. We had printed and attached the luggage tags ahead of time so they took our checked bags right away on the carts. Customs was a breeze as well. Then we got to the HAL check in. The agent that checked us in seemed scattered brain. I had to correct her several times. The other agents sounded more put together. We then took seats in a staging area until they were ready for our group. Then it was a quick walk pass the photo area to the gangway. Our room was on Level 2, where the gangway was so it was very convenient. We dropped off our carryon bags in the room and went up to the Lido for lunch and then a tour of the ship.

..... NEXT: Review of HAL Zaandam

[chinita415]

Stateroom 2577, Main Deck, midship, ocean view, starboard

I chose this stateroom because we are a motion prone family and I wanted to be on a lower level and midship. The cabin more than met our needs. It felt very spacious for 3 people. When we boarded, the beds were pushed together so we requested the stewards to split them. Surprisingly, the room seems a lot bigger with the beds split on either side of the picture window. The beddings and pillows were in good shape. We slept well each night! There was more than adequate storage space for 3 people: 4 closet sections with adjustable shelves and hanging rods; 4 drawers at the desk; 2 night stands with 2 drawers each. We unpacked completely and stored the luggage under the beds. The bathroom is the biggest we have had on a cruise ship. The water pressure and water temperature were great, except for one night when the water was lukewarm. No problems with room temperature control as we stayed very comfortable. We had the radio tuned on the public announcements (channel 5) so we wouldn’t miss them. There was some rust on one half of the window which blurred it, but other than that the room was in great condition.

 

The location of the room was perfect. Most port days, the water level was such that either disembarking or boarding would be on our level just a few doors down. We used the stairs a lot. Just a few flights up to the front desk or the Explorations Café. The self serve launderette was just around the corner and the public bathroom was a few doors down in case someone was hogging the cabin loo! The Promenade Deck was right above us and we did hear people walk in the morning but it didn’t bother us as we woke up early most days anyways. It was also very convenient to pop up one level to the deck on scenic cruising days.

 

Public Spaces

The ship looked much better in person than online. The color and finishing are certainly bold but came across gaudy online. It was much more elegant in person.

 

My favorite spot to hang out was on one of the Eames chairs by the window at the Explorations Café. I spent many hours with my iPad and a cup of coffee and watching the scenery go by. They had an excellent library with Alaska guides and books, plus other fiction and non fiction books of all subjects. There were also many games and puzzles to keep adults and kids busy. There were sufficient computers to accommodate everyone. I purchased an internet plan at $55 for 100 minutes. Wifi was available in all the public lounges, but I was able to get a signal in the cabin a few times, though it was not consistent. The satellite connection was very slow so the minutes ate up fast. They had 2 for 1 minutes on the last day. The NY Times website was free so we used that to read up on the days’ news and to check the weather. The Explorer’s Lounge and Seaview Lounge were also great spots to read and watch the scenery if the library was full. We passed through the casino but never played in it. The smoking bothered us.

 

The Spa and Fitness Center were excellent! We purchased the Thermal Suite pass on the first day and used the heated loungers and mineral pool daily. There is a private deck right outside the thermal suite that was a great “cool down” when it got too warm. The fitness center had adequate equipment to keep the gym rat happy. It had absolutely awesome views as it was on the bow. There are seats at the bow windows in front of the treadmills and these are some of the best seats on the boat for scenic cruising days. A word of caution for the locker rooms: the keys are universal meaning your key can open any locker and vice versa. Do not put anything of value in the lockers. Leave it in your room safe. I found out one day when an older gentleman walked off with my robe by mistake and told me he was able to open his locker with my key.

 

The awesome heated loungers

 

My view on the elliptical machine as we exited Glacier Bay

 

My sister used the hot tub and pool under the enclosed roof and said the temperature was fine. We saw a few people in the aft outdoor kiddie pool. They had the polar bear plunge there on Glacier Bay day and a teenager said that the pool was heated.

 

Neat video of the roof closing

 

We used the launderette quite a few times. You can get quarters from the front desk. Washer is $2, dryer $1. Sometimes it was full, other times empty. There were no posted times for the room and the door was open all night long though we tried to finish early. The dryers are high up and deep! We lost a few items but found them later. We also found other people’s things which we returned to the room.

 

.... NEXT: continued review of Zaandam

[chinita415]

.... Review of Zaandam (continued)

 

Dining

Before the cruise, I wasn’t sure I wanted to sit through 2 hours of dinner at the Main Dining Room each night. My last all inclusive resort’s food was not worth the time. Well, the food on the Zaandam Rotterdam Dining Room was superb! We ate there all but one night. We chose Anytime Dining because I wasn’t sure about our shore activities, but went at 7:45pm each night and were seated in the same general area though we had different servers and attendants. In hindsight, I would have chosen the late 8pm seating so we could get the same staff. We are used to excellent fresh cuisine in CA and the MDR did not disappoint. We enjoyed choosing the daily specials from the highlighted chef of the day from the Culinary Council. As for the Master Chef’s Dinner, we enjoyed it and it appeared the staff did as well. The menu selection was adequate and the service was only slowed by a tad bit.

 

Steak tartare

 

Views as we exited College Fjord

 

Master Chef Dinner Menu

 

We ate at the Lido for all meals and found it to be ok. Even though some menu items were the same as the MDR, we found the quality to be inferior though still good. They served us in the Lido the first 2 days to prevent any illnesses. We came to the Lido often to fill our travel mug/canteen with hot water/tea and coffee, especially on cold glacier days! The Lido got busy at times and trying a table can be challenging during those times. Some people ate out under the covered roof area by the pool. We didn’t go to the Pinnacle Grill or Canaletto and ate the Terrace Grill only once.

 

We ordered room service for breakfast for many days because we had such early start to our days. Breakfast was delivered warm and on time (usually the first 10 min of the 30 min window). The selection did get repetitive though. We tried to write in items and succeeded with hard boiled eggs but failed with French toast.

 

There was afternoon tea in the MDR daily at 3pm. I only went to the Indonesian Tea day. The snacks were delicious! We were also tempted by the Cupcake day but decided our waistlines had enough.

 

I found menus for all the venues on display in the Greenhouse Spa retreat room. It was great to preview them so I had an idea by dinner time. I think they are also on display at the Lido and outside the MDR too.

Activities

Since our days were early and often long, we weren’t looking for a party scene. I really enjoyed reading in the library the most. Given the age and interest of the average traveler on this particular cruise, the activities offered were pretty low key. The daily Explorer newsletter was delivered to the room nightly for the next day. But they should post the listings thorough the ship. We took a picture of the list with our camera so we can refer to it. You can also pick up extra copies by the librarian’s desk.

 

We didn’t go to any of the travel guide talks, but we watched many of them on TV in the cabin. Our guide Kainoa was excellent. I enjoyed listening to his talks while I was folding clothes or doing other things around the cabin. They also broadcast other shows on TV as I watched the Filipino Crew show and the disembarkation assembly including the “Love in Any Language” performance on TV.

 

We tried to go the kitchen galley tour but decided against it because it was VERY crowded. We went to one of the cooking demo with Chef Anand from the Pinnacle Grill where he prepared a salad and crème brulee. They had recipe cards for both dishes and small pots of crème brulee samples for the audience. One product I learned about was caramelized sugar. This product will caramelize on its own without a torch! Great for those without one and as Chef Anand said, they had to use it because the sample pots were plastic. These demos were very popular. Get there early for seats, otherwise you will have to stand or sit in the aisles.

 

Chef Anand and Party Planner Paula

 

 

 

The jackpot bingos seem to be very popular as the lines were out the door at the theater before each event. I didn’t set foot in the computer lab but some of the offerings looked interesting. My mom went to a tai chi class and my sister took a yoga class and both had positive feedback. Mom also went to a dance class and the flower arranging demo and she enjoyed them both. We wanted to do wine/liquor tasting but never got around to it. There were Friends of Bill W meetings and LGBT Gatherings daily.

 

We really appreciated not being hawked to as we had been on previous cruises. There were no frequent public announcements about art or jewelry sales. The “sidewalk” sales in the hallways and Lido were not pushy. A big plus for class by HAL.

Entertainment

What can I say? This was cruise ship level entertainment. Most of the theater production was cheesy to me but my mom and others seem to enjoy it. I watched the first few minutes of the Broadway review with Bob Mackie costumes and had to leave. The Crow’s Nest is the “club” but it’s a different type of club than I am used to. I am not sure I heard anything from the last 20 years the few times I was up there. Jenny and the HAL Cats was a good lounge act and Jenny tried to keep the room engaged. But most of the time, the dance floor was empty and people sat around drinking and talking. Singing with Jenny was a live Karaoke with the HAL Cats as the backup…. lots of Elvis and country songs. Karaoke with the DJ was also filled with the same tunes.

 

The other live musicians on board were excellent. The chamber group played in the lounge each night and sometimes in the MDR. I played violin many moons ago so I appreciated their talents. I saw the violin player in the gym almost daily. He is a cordial young man from Eastern Europe who was having a good time traveling with the ship. The jazz group also sounded great in the Ocean Bar. We noticed that the pianist was reading her sheet music from an iPad!

 

Service

Top notch all around! It was a little unusual for us to see such a homogenous crew of mostly Indonesian and Filipinos. The Spa and other staff were more diverse. Our cabin stewards Setyo and Dwi were discreet yet friendly. Setyo was almost ALWAYS in the hall to greet us when we came back! He always asked about our day and if we needed anything. My sister was feeling a little left out with the towel animals the first two days so I told Setyo to make sure to give her one next. He didn’t wait until the next day. She had one waiting for her the same night after dinner. Since we had Anytime Dining, we had different servers. We had great service with all of them and minor issues were taken care of immediately. The Lido staff was busy but we had a few attendants who made us feel special, joking with us about seeing whales and wildlife.

 

Other passengers

Ok…. this is the one bad part of the review. A few rude passengers really clouded our experience of the cruise. I knew that with HAL and going early in the season, fellow passengers would fall in the older age range. But it was REALLY apparent we were in the minority both in terms of age and ethnicity. Most passengers were Caucasian in their golden years. We are Chinese but our skin tone and facial features are such that we are mistaken for Filipinas often. We thought we were paranoid and self conscious that we looked like the “hired help.” But several personal experiences throughout the cruise really confirmed some passengers’ bad attitudes. My mom was in the Greenhouse Spa retreat room in her street clothes drinking the juice before she changed into her robe to go into the Thermal Suite. A woman snobbishly said to her, “you know this is a special area for those who paid extra!” We had several more interactions like this in the spa/thermal suite and at the Lido and other public areas with other passengers who gave us the cold shoulder and did not seem interested in talking with us either as a group or individually. My mom commented that she felt like she was in a time warp in the pre-segregation era! We did not experience this on our previous cruises.

I hope those rude passengers were just the exception and not the norm of typical HAL passengers. We certainly met many very friendly and interesting passengers of all backgrounds and had many interesting conversations. But those FEW rude people really spoiled the experience for us. I talked a gay couple who told us they did not feel comfortable holding hands in public, and I don’t blame them. There were a handful of babies and a few school aged children. The mom of a couple of grade school boys said they were having a great time despite not having many children of their age around. They had a special junior ranger program on Glacier Bay day where the kids can get their badge.

...NEXT: Ketchikan

[chinita415]

We arrived to Ketchikan on a rainy and cold morning. Just as advertised!

 

We ate breakfast in the room and went to the rain gauge to meet the Island Wings van. While waiting, we met the other passengers on our 8am flight. Shona drove us back to their office at the dock. The tide was VERY low so the ramp was quite steep. There is a portable toilet at the street level. Michelle was running late because the private charter pick up in the bush was not ready when she got there. We later found out from Michelle it was Steven Rinella and his crew from the Travel Channel show The Wild Within. He was out bear hunting for the last few weeks. We saw them unload trash bags which I can assume were the bear carcasses. Boo hiss

 

Michelle's dog Bodhi! He can put on quite a show but doesn't like to be petted.

 

The flight was AMAZING! We were afraid of getting sick but the flight was very smooth and calm. We could hardly tell when we lifted off and landed. Michelle is so knowledgeable about the area. It was a foggy day so she had to fly around the island instead of over it and it took longer. She was in contact by radio with the other pilots ahead of us so they could inform each other where the best views and landing areas were. The lake where she normally lands was still pretty frozen over so we landed in a cove instead. Normally, she allows guests to wander around for almost half an hour. But because we started late and had to fly around the island, we were only on the landing beach long enough for everyone to get their photos. It was long enough though as it was very cold and raining. Apparently Michelle said that other companies only land in the water and do not let the passengers get off. On the way back, we tried to look for bears but not everyone saw them. Michelle tried her best to circle around the area where she spotted one, but we probably spooked it circling around!

 

We landed on the beach in that cove. For scale, those tiny white specks are the other floatplanes!

 

One of many amazing views

 

After the flight, we walked around Creek Street, but the pounding rain made it rather unpleasant. All the shops along Creek St. were very touristy. We tried to take the funicular up to the Cape Fox Inn but it was out of service temporarily. We stopped by a salmon shop, a cubicle really, called Salmon Etc on Mission St. We sampled their products and ended up buying a case to ship home. The salesperson showed us the difference in quality between their cans and those from the competition. It WAS superior as I bought a few cans elsewhere in Anchorage and it was definitely different. I also bought a few of the foil bags packed fillets. They are yummy! I have been eating them the last week since I’ve been home with cream cheese and crackers.

 

.... NEXT: Juneau

OK folks, this is all I have written in advance so far. So the next installments may take a while. But I hope I have whetted your appetite for more! :p

[chinita415]

I had planned to go to Lynn Canal, but we were getting tired after lunch and the increasing rain did not encourage me either.

 

Oops! I meant Lynn CANYON. :p Honest mistake... Lynn Canal later in Skagway.

[aussie girl2]

Keep it up! I will be with Michelle (Island Wings) doing Misty Fjords in a months time and your pics have my heart racing!

As for the ethnic thing, you have a good attitude so just keep your cool and your head held high. Its just ignorance on other peoples part. I train a service dog who is with me 24 hours a day, I have become very polite and patient with people assuming and commenting EVERY DAY that I am blind or intellectually disabled.

I look forward to your next installment! :D

 

Mel

[andeesue]

Thank you so much for posting your thorough and well-written report. The photos and commentary are excellent. I am so sorry that you and your family experienced some tasteless and unacceptable remarks from several ignorant and classless fellow passengers. Shame on them!

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I am thoroughly enjoying your travelogue! Thank you so much for taking the time to write it--it's just increasing my anticipation of our Alaska cruise next month! We flew with Michelle in 2007 when we did the Anan Creek bear viewing tour. It was a wonderful experience. She had a different dog then--I had heard that he passed. Her new pup is so cute! Here's her previous one:

 

I'm sorry for the issues with other passengers; there's just no excuse for that behavior. I'll never understand why some people seem incapable of appreciating diversity.

 

I'm very much looking forward to the rest of your review. :D

 

Thank you!!

 

:D

[vbmom87]

What an outstanding review!!! You are a great writer!! Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. I am looking forward to the rest of your review.

 

Sorry you experienced some very rude passengers on your cruise. Sad to say but there are some very snobby people in this world. Fortunately they seem to be the minority. I sure hope so anyway!!!!

[chinita415]

Thanks for all the positive feedback folks! I am just trying to capture all my thoughts on this trip before they are fleeting memories in my cluttered mind. And what fun reliving the trip. I am just a fellow traveler who appreciates what this CC community offers and want to contribute back. Sorry for the bad grammar that I didn't catch! :rolleyes: English is not my first language, but that is no excuse. I truly admire the polyglots in Europe. Only we Americans are so linguistically limited.

 

We flew with Michelle in 2007 when we did the Anan Creek bear viewing tour. It was a wonderful experience. She had a different dog then--I had heard that he passed. Her new pup is so cute!

 

I am not a dog person, but I THINK Shona said Bodhi is miniature Sheltie. He is getting a sister soon so some of you may get to meet her!

[chinita415]

We sailed into Juneau on a clear and bright morning along the Gastineau Channel. I think we left the rain behind in Ketchikan! The scenery was beautiful with snow capped peaks and waterfalls. As we pulled into port, I admired the houses on Douglas Island along the Channel. What a wonderful place to live.

 

Our original plan was to rent a car and drive out to Mendenhall and Auke Bay and maybe go up the Tram. But my sister really wanted to do something active and she had done some research the few days before on the ship. We literally booked our excursion with Above and Beyond Alaska on the phone as we were pulling into the dock! We spoke with Becky the owner on the phone and she made all the arrangements to add us to the day’s glacier hike. It was the best last minute decision ever as this was easily the highlight of the whole trip. I felt guilty putting my mom on the HAL tour but she insisted we go on our own.

 

We walked over to the base of the Mt. Roberts Tram and waited for our van. We immediately spotted other people who looked like they were going on a glacier hike… not too hard to spot the active folks in hiking shoes and rain gear. As the group gathered, we got to know each other as we were going to spend the next 8 hours together. We had 9 people total, ranging from a college kid from Texas, my sister and I, two couples in their ?30’s from Louisville, KY and Texas, and an older ?50’s couple from literally the next community up the hill from where I live in SoCal! (If any of you lovely folks are reading, please say hi!) Our guides Ed and Bjorn drove up in the van to whisk us off to the trailhead about 20 minutes away. Once at the trailhead, we were given our gear which included a technical daypack with our lunch (bagel/cream cheese, water, protein bars, and some candy), helmet, climbing harness, and ice pick. We were fitted with the appropriate crampons which we then carried in our own pack. They also had rain pants and jackets for those who needed them and walking sticks as well.

 

Then off we went on our adventure! The first part of the hike was on a well maintained forestry trail, the West Glacier Trail. Ed warned us this was the easy part and to take it easy for the hard stuff later. Boy was he right. The trail was beautiful and lush green and smelled and sounded like a rain forest.

 

Ed and Bjorn took turns leading and rounding out the end of the pack and took time to get to know each guest. When we got to the unmaintained part of the trail, Ed said, “I call this my trail” as apparently he and other guides from Above and Beyond are responsible for creating the path. There was some rock scrambling and a lot of slippery bedrock to scale. Some of us found it easier to just get down on our butts and slide down the steep parts. I have no shame and do that often hiking here in CA! I call it the Sierra Scramble. We hiked for a good 2 hours before we got to the edge of the icefield. We were rewarded with ridiculously gorgeous views of the Mendenhall Glacier.

 

Rock scrambling

 

What a view!

 

We were then instructed on how to put on and walk with our crampons and wear our climbing harness. “Walk like you just got off a horse and take big steps so you don’t trip on your own gear.” It was not too hard with those instructions. We walked on the crunchy glacier with Ed and Bjorn telling us many interesting things about glacier, crevasses, etc. We also got to refill our water bottle in one of the open pools with delicious glacier water.

 

Due to time constraints, Ed asked if the group wanted to see an ice cave or do ice climbing. My sister said that seeing an ice cave was on her bucket list and no one else in the group had a preference so ice cave it was. WOW is all I have to say about that ice cave. Ed said they have known about this magnificent cave for the past year and it’s their company’s little big secret. It was a little hairy getting down into the cave as we had to take off our crampons and hike over loose rocks and cross a slippery rocky stream. But the reward was worth it as you can see.

 

We took a different route back down because the rock scramble was too steep to go down. This alternative route was no walk in the park either. There was definitely some weed wacking involved with no trails to speak off at some points. I was very glad we were in good hands. There was a lot of Sierra Scramble on my butt, hanging onto branches as I hop from one spot to the next, and walking on muddy stream beds. There was also "rappelling" on a big boulder on ropes that Above and Beyond put up. But what fun I had!! I consider myself to be in pretty good shape and have done moderate day hikes all over CA. (Though I’ve never done overnight backpacking). I was TIRED at the end but still would have done it all over again. Some people started to fall behind so Bjorn stayed with them to make sure they were ok.

 

One last look at Mendenhall Lake on the way out. Can you see the Visitor Center on the other side?

 

I have nothing but excellent things to say about our guides and this excursion. Ed and Bjorn are affable young men who are Juneau natives. They are very knowledgeable and just fun to spend the day with… and not bad on the eyes either ladies! They made us feel safe and well cared for on our long day with them. The only unexpected negative was the LOUD helicopter noises that roared every half hour or so as they ascended and descended from the glacier bringing people to their glacier walk the easy way. At one point I counted SIX of them in formation. It sounded like a military operation, really ruining the ambiance of the virgin forest in which we hiked. Bjorn said that they had clients from Israel who commented that the sounds were louder than on their military bases. This is definitely a very physically demanding excursion. Be warned and check out their website before you decide if this is appropriate for you.

 

As for our mom, we signed her up for the Grand Tour of Juneau with HAL that included Mendenhall Glacier, salmon hatchery, and the Glacier Garden. She enjoyed the Mendenhall area and walked towards Nuggets Falls. She is a flower buff and liked the Glacier Garden even though it was early in the season. The hatchery was the only disappointment as it was way too early in the season and nothing was open or flooded yet so they just had to imagine what it would look like.

 

We had planned to eat at Tracy’s Crab Shack but we were tired and the MDR food was good. So we headed back to the ship and soaked in the mineral pool and sat on the heated loungers. Now THAT was a great idea! We had another wonderful dinner in the MDR and went up to Deck 9 as we sailed away from Juneau late in the evening.

 

.... NEXT: Skagway

[Krazy Kruizers]

Wonderful

 

Looking forward to rest.

 

Great pictures

[sapper1]

Thanks for all the positive feedback folks! I am just trying to capture all my thoughts on this trip before they are fleeting memories in my cluttered mind. And what fun reliving the trip. I am just a fellow traveler who appreciates what this CC community offers and want to contribute back. Sorry for the bad grammar that I didn't catch! :rolleyes: English is not my first language, but that is no excuse. I truly admire the polyglots in Europe. Only we Americans are so linguistically limited. /quote]

 

 

 

Thank you for taking the time to write the wonderful review. You have no apology to make for your remarkable command of English grammar. Many people who claim English as a first language could take lessons from you.:)

[Assateague Island Princes]

What a great review! I so enjoy your writing style - as though you were talking just to me! Appears you had a terrific time - isn't Alaska magnificent??? Can't wait for more - you've whetted my appetite for my 4th return trip to AK on August 5th. Keep it coming please!

 

Oh, and those rude passengers? Heck with them, don't let the turkey's get you down!

[vmom]

Great review! Thanks so much for taking the time and sharing your experiences.

 

I'm sorry you and your family had to experience such rudeness from a few fellow passengers. Luckily it seems that those few were the minority but unfortunately the actions and words of even one rude person tends to stay in our memory more than the words and actions of 100 kind people.

 

We have cruised Princess and RCCL, but not Celebrity or HAL.

[witchegirl]

I just booked this exact trip yesterday for myself and my 2 daughters for this July, so I just wanted to thank you for the pictures and the reviews. It's always fun to read about where you are going in a just a few months!

[Wannaknow]

Thank you so much for sharing this. You are really adventurous to do all this. I am too chicken to take these tours, but feel I am experiencing it, in some way, by seeing your terrific pictures. It is very exciting for those of us waiting to take our 1st cruise to Alaska. We really appreciate it!

[I-cruisers]

Thank you so much for your review of the glacier trek with Above & Beyond. My brother and I are doing a private trek with them next week because he wants to have the freedom to stop and take pictures and we want to move at our own pace. Loved seeing the pictures of the rock scramble and the ice cave. Gave me a better idea what to expect. I walked close to 15 miles yesterday (not all at once) as a pre-trek warmup so I think I'm ready!

[gaylecool]

What a fabulous review, it's just like being there!

 

Thanks you so much for taking the time to share your experiences, and I must say I am just appalled at the behavior of some of the passengers. Just chalk them up to being completely classless lowlife's.

 

Looking forward to your continued review, I am enjoying it immensely!

[Orsino]

We are on the Zaandam next month. I really appreciate your perspective on your cruise. Since you enjoyed the thermal suite so much, I think I'll have to buy a week pass for myself. HAL should send you a commission.

 

I'm also Chinese-American. I'm happy to say that I've never had other passengers talk down to me. I'm also very good at ignoring people though. On the flip-side, I think the Asian staff take a special interest in me. I hear that the staff are actually very accommodating to everyone, but I like to think we have a special bond. :D

[chinita415]

Thank you so much for your review of the glacier trek with Above & Beyond. My brother and I are doing a private trek with them next week because he wants to have the freedom to stop and take pictures and we want to move at our own pace. Loved seeing the pictures of the rock scramble and the ice cave. Gave me a better idea what to expect. I walked close to 15 miles yesterday (not all at once) as a pre-trek warmup so I think I'm ready!

 

You are going to have a great time! Make sure you bring some lightweight gloves with you so you can grab onto boulders, branches, ice and not get scratched up. I really think the route out was more difficult, not because we were more tired, but because going downhill was harder on difficult terrain. I'll post more pix since I was limited to 6 per post.

 

Entrance of the ice cave under the glacier

 

Don't fall in!

 

Up and down stuff like this on the way out

 

This is where I was grabbing onto the branches

[chinita415]

We are on the Zaandam next month. I really appreciate your perspective on your cruise. Since you enjoyed the thermal suite so much, I think I'll have to buy a week pass for myself. HAL should send you a commission.

 

I'm also Chinese-American. I'm happy to say that I've never had other passengers talk down to me. I'm also very good at ignoring people though. On the flip-side, I think the Asian staff take a special interest in me. I hear that the staff are actually very accommodating to everyone, but I like to think we have a special bond. :D

 

I read about the thermal suite here on CC and had to check it out for myself the first day! Pay it forward I guess. A frequent conversation starter from the Indonesian staff was, "Are you Filipino??" The only person who asked, "Are you Chinese?" first was the Filipino manager who was in the video of the roof closing.

[vbmom87]

What wonderful photos!!! What a wonderful excursion!!! How I wish I were young again.;)

[chinita415]

What wonderful photos!!! What a wonderful excursion!!! How I wish I were young again.;)

Our guides said they have taken people in their 70's out on the trek before, though I admit these are very fit and active seniors.

[chinita415]

We sailed into Skagway on another bright and crisp morning. The scenery was breathtaking with snow capped peaks shooting up the horizon across Lynn Canal with a wisp of ethereal low lying cloud. We walked passed all the train cars at the dock into town.

 

We made a stop at the National Park Service office before we finally made it to the Avis office. There were 4 people ahead of me so I sent my mom and sister to window shop while I waited. (There was a Starbucks on 2nd Ave, but I resisted!) It took a little longer because they were still training their new agents but I think I waited at most 15 minutes. Once we got the keys, we walked a short 2 blocks to the lot to pick up the car, a 4-door Corolla Sports. This little car has some kick and handled the mountain driving very well. My current and last car are German and typical rental cars just don’t compare. But this little Corolla surprised me.

 

After loading Murray’s Guide on the iPad, we were off on our drive. We pulled out of town with other rental cars and saw a quite a few other van tours and big tour buses on the road with us. But after a few stops, everyone spread out and I had the road mostly to myself for miles and miles. The scenery just got better and better. We started off with green valleys and canyons with the railroad tracks visible.

 

 

We continued to climb and drove into white winter wonderland as we got to the White Pass Summit.

 

 

My sister downloaded a cool app called Photosynth on her iPhone and took this 360 of White Pass http://photosynth.net/view.aspx?cid=4050af27-9e9f-4ccc-bb46-6e34cae69bd2

 

We drove along many still frozen over ponds and lakes, wondering if Emerald Lake was going to be the same.

 

We finally arrived at Carcross after a few hours. We turned into town and pulled in front of the new visitor center. We talked with the very nice ladies at the desk and got a recommendation for lunch at the Crag Lake Bakery. We had brought breakfast sandwiches and other snacks for a picnic, but decided to check out this lead to support local businesses. Once we left Carcross, we turned right onto Tagish Road for a few miles before we saw the sign for the bakery. A tour group was just leaving and they said the soup was great. We walked in a hexagonal, almost yurt like, building and were greet by the proprietors Tim and Gloria. Gloria brought out the most delicious bowls of borscht with homemade bread and soft butter. Most of the ingredients of the soup came from Gloria’s garden right inside the building! Gloria is a multi-talented pioneer woman. She had many veggies and flowers growing in pots. She made all of the willow furniture, AND she carved the signs and other décor. We talked with Tim and Gloria some more and found out that they had moved from Saskatchewan and opened the bakery just a few months ago. There are still making improvements on the property including building some stairs in the front. The building was owned by a medicine man who used to hold spiritual retreats there. He passed away and is buried on the land closed by. We bought some baked goods for the road and took a short walk to the lake shore to look and listen to the cracking melting ice.

 

We turned back onto the main highway, passing Caribou Crossing and the desert before we finally made it to Emerald Lake. To our delight, the lake was not frozen and was in all its emerald glory. This picture looked better than the postcard I bought in Skagway because the hills are covered in snow here.

 

We made another quick stop back at Carcross to use the bathroom and to visit the Carcross General Store for some coffee and ice cream. Most of the roads in town were being repaved so it’s a bit of a mess right now. The locals said hopefully most of the work will be completed in the next month. We didn’t make too many stops on the way back, though I did pull over for a quick nap. My mom AND sister both left their driver’s licenses on the ship and couldn’t take over for me. We remembered the passports but also forgot our Canadian money left over from Vancouver. Thankfully, all the merchants took USD and gave us change in USD.

 

When I turned around a bend, I saw 2 cars pulled over the road. Bear!

 

On the way back to town, we took a detour to the Dyea Road scenic point to look at the ships in town that day. We filled the car up and returned it to the Avis lot. My sister and I had contemplated doing the Lower Dewey Lake trail earlier, but we were tired from the long ride and it started to rain again. So we just bought some souvenirs and went back on the ship for some more relaxing in the thermal suite before dinner.

 

Bye bye Skagway

 

 

.... NEXT: Glacier Bay