Review on our Alaska Cruise aboard the Radiance

[jennat]

Is your review available on Kindle?:p:rolleyes: Seriously, it's that good, and a refreshing change from so many forums.

 

Awww...shucks, thanks!

[Brandylee]

I haven't been on these boards for a couple of years now, but we're back cruising and looking forward our Aug 5th Radiance cruise - Vancouver to Alaska - staying in Anchorage for a couple of days, and then flying home to Vancouver. We took the Radiance to Alaska (round trip) cruise years ago, and have been on the Radiance a couple more times since then, and just love the ship, but we're really looking forward to seeing all the renovations.

 

I loved your review - thank you so much! And I'm so happy the ice cream machine is still there. I know it was more frozen yogurt than ice cream, but I'm not sure if it really is fat free?! Gee, it sure would be nice if it was!

[jennat]

After such an amazing day in Icy Straight we were excited for our Juneau excursion. We had booked a "land and sea photography tour" with Stepintoalaska.com actually with the cruiseline as this is the only way they will let you book it. It was basically a whale watching tour and visit to Mendenhall but with a gimmick....and what a gimmick it was. They had a professional photographer with us who was teaching us how to use our camera, tricks for getting better pictures and how to "make photos" rather that just "take photos". We were also looking to book a tour to land on a glacier and hike around since we were in port for 13 hours or something.....seriously.

But I get ahead of myself.

 

We set the alarm for 6 because the excursion was early. Seriously, what was my crazy brain thinking...pretty soon I will be joining those shorts wearing crazies and swimming in freezing weather. The captain had mentioned that the ride (float?/arrival) into Juneau was exceptionally pretty so to be sure and not miss it.

After a yawn and a stretch, I threw open my curtains and balcony door and took a big breath of cloudy, rainy, yucky, "what the hell happened to the good weather", crappy weather.

 

 

 

This started right where the ship was docked.....

I would love to tell you Juneau was beautiful but truthfully, I never saw it. We had a cuppa joe, donned our rain gear and headed out to meet our excursion. There were 9 of us on this excursion so it was nice and small by design. They picked us up in their van and we headed to the harbor to catch the boat. The photographer immediately introduced himself, gave his credentials and started teaching with the help of a laptop and slides.

we arrived at the harbor and there were eagles everywhere.

 

 

[jennat]

 

 

 

We boarded the boat which was an awesome vessel for what we were doing (who talks like that).....all the windows raised up so we could stay dry and have our shots unobstructed by the glass

 

 

 

We started our journey with eyes pealed through wet foggy windows for any sign of marine life. The Captain was awesome as he searched the water.....It wasn't long until we spotted our first humpback with it's baby. The baby was playing and breaching and we counted ourselves lucky to witness it. The frustrating thing, in my own princess world, of whale watching is you can't get very close. No environmentalists are allowed to preach to me on how it is better for the whales, I'm not breakin' the rules, just saying in my little "everything is about me" existence, I couldn't see very well.

 

[jennat]

Okay, I just had this typed and deleted it, dang it......

 

This is when he demonstrated how the windows in the boat all could be raised up for better, dryer viewing. Perfect.

 

 

 

You will have to take my word for it on the breaching because I don't have a photo and I can't figure out how to get a still from the video out of imovie and onto, well, anything else.

 

As we were watching the frolicking baby, the captain was busy making and receiving calls, trying to procure us more viewing opportunities. My husband heard the initials KW. He looked at me and said "I think they are referring to Killer Whales"

 

Sure enough, next we came upon a huge pod of resident orca. The guide estimated that there was between 20 and 30. What was so exciting is that they, too, were putting on a show. I think it was probably a rain dance to get the rain to stop. I didn't have the heart to tell them that I had already tried it earlier that morning on my balcony and it doesn't work. Instead I just sat back and enjoyed the show (while videoing and taking photos like crazy). The guide even pulled out his camera, and he said that he never pulls out his camera. He said it had been about 2 yrs since he had seen orca like that. Juneau redeemed itself!

 

 

 

 

[jennat]

 

 

 

 

Can you imagine seeing all these fins coming toward you?

 

They were flipping on their bellies, diving, jumping......it really was awesome.

[jennat]

 

The guide said he had good news and bad news. The good news was that the pod was swimming right towards us....hurray! The bad news was we had to get going because we were quite a was from the marina and time was a ticking. That stinks! In fact, I kind of think the bad news negates the good news but que sera sera.

We headed back, tipped the captain (which is not a regular occurrence in Alaska is kind of a point of contention with me that we will get to later (something to look forward to : )), and headed off with the guide to Mendenhall Glacier.

 

BTW Stilllll raining.....

 

 

I have to go and upload more pics...be right back.

[Suzie999]

Jenn,

 

I'm loving your review! I know how much time you put into it and we will all learn from it. It's such a treat to get all the small details that you didn't go into when we talked.

 

I'm certainly glad you had a great vacation because (although I love them dearly) I don't want to be "Mom" for long.(been there, done that) I'm also glad you survived, whales swimming close, ice burgs calving, and bears just feet from you! Stop it!!! Keep safe!

 

Love, Mom

[jennat]

Yeah, so did I mention it was raining? Not like sprinkling but like "grab a hammer and nails and build an arc" raining. When the guide offered the incredibly trendy rain ponchos we all raised our hands.

 

Now I'm not saying we will be seeing these in Paris on the runway but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do!

 

The guide was taking us on the waterfall hike (not sure if that is it's real name or just it's nickname by me, but it was a hike and it was to a waterfall so there you go.)

 

 

There was a lake at the base of the glacier (okay, I am pretty sure this is a regular occurrence with glaciers, possibly even a necessary component for it to be considered a glacier) but all I know is there was one here and it was filled with ice bergs. If you have never seen anything like this before, it was so cool.

 

 

[jennat]

Jenn,

 

I'm loving your review! I know how much time you put into it and we will all learn from it. It's such a treat to get all the small details that you didn't go into when we talked.

 

I'm certainly glad you had a great vacation because (although I love them dearly) I don't want to be "Mom" for long.(been there, done that) I'm also glad you survived, whales swimming close, ice burgs calving, and bears just feet from you! Stop it!!! Keep safe!

 

Love, Mom

 

Thanks mom.

BTW, she is referring to the fact that she watched my kiddos for 12 days while we were gone. Thanks mom (and dad)

[jennat]

 

 

 

 

 

[jennat]

While we were walking I was talking with the photographer about bears. Let's just say, he didn't help reassure me. Great!

After exploring for a while, we headed back into town. We decided to bag the idea of walking on the glacier because well, we were wet and cold. Another thing that was definitely on our "to do" list was to visit the Red Onion Salon so we strapped on our flippers and headed a block or two up main street to get some lunch. When we arrived there was a line out the door but we managed to be second in that line.

They asked the people in front of us if they would be willing to share a table so I immediately said that we would be happy to share (when it was our turn....you thought I butted in line, didn't you?)

Well, little did I realize that the tables we were sharing should not have been classified as tables.....more like maybe a plant stand or a pedestal for a vase. Combine this with the fact that the floor is made of saw dust and our backpacks, etc are dripping wet and it makes for a very intimate experience! We quickly grabbed up a "bag holding chair" and crowded around the table with our two new best friends who happened to be said "muckity mucks" that I mentioned earlier. One worked in IT and the other in logistics. I don't know what "logistics" means but it sure does sound important. I often tell my husband that I am not a homemaker (because let's be honest, I am not that good at cooking and cleaning) but that I am a "logistical specialist" And I KNOW how important my job is so this guy must be top rung of the ladder (at least based on my logic).

It was interesting conversation talking about all the dry dock problems and successes and their lives as husband and wife and traveling around doing different dry docks together. Don't worry RCCL they were very diplomatic and represented your company well.

We really enjoyed the live entertainment (the piano player was heckling the crowd) and atmosphere. I wouldn't have expected the food to be very good at a place like this but I thought it was fantastic. It was a really good experience that I would recommend.

 

 

 

 

Bad bear!

I'm going to get me one of these signs for my kitchen~

Look closely at this photo. There is a bear and his conquest.....reaffirming the fact that bears are mean......bad bear two!

Edited June 26, 2011 by jennat

[ladylawyer]

Wow! I just compared your Mendenhall Glacier photo to one that I took in 2005. I wish I could post photos, because the difference is marked. I'm glad that we're going back, next year. I just can't urge people, enough, to see this wonder before it's gone. :(

 

I'm so enjoying your photos. The whale photos are priceless! Thanks for taking the time! ~ LL

[jennat]

We headed back through downtown to the ship, hoping that they had some kind of hypothermic treatments available to us, as at this point I'm pretty sure all blood had left our extremities to keep our vital organs alive....or to digest all the food we just ate. I could be I am just a baby but I don't think so.

 

We were cold enough to risk being ridiculed in our bathing suits, so we put them on and headed for the Solarium's hot tub. We soaked for a while, got hot (I really am quite difficult to please) and tried the pool (the green one). IT was FREEZING COLD. Not like, "I just got out of a hot tub so it should be cold" cold but "holy hell, that is glacier fed water cold" I'm just sayin'

We went upstairs, to our obligatory nap, ate at the Cafe and met up with our fiends for the piano man. They like to sit in the front row so we could see very well. I am not the biggest fan of production numbers on ships but this crew was fantastic. The singers and the dancers were incredibly talented. It was a lot of fun to watch and it was based on the music of Billy Joel, Elton John, Barry Manilow and others.

 

 

 

I was taking photos like crazy (without the flash) because, well, that is what I do. At one point when the lead guy was singing, I went to take a photo and the flash went off. Remember we were in the front row.....I'm surprised he didn't fall off the floor. I immediately threw the camera into my friends lap trying to hide my guilt while trying to figure out who sabotaged me. Someone must have snuck in and turned on my flash. As sure as I can figure it, it must have been someone from the pool who saw my awesome, tight body and was jealous that I look so incedible in a two piece thong so they struck out by trying to humiliate me. I never did catch the culprit so I will never know for sure.

After the show, Keith the cruise director came over at which time my friend's husband totally sold me out. He told me that I was the one responsible for almost blinding his talent. Stinker! Did I mention to Keith that my friend had snuck a screwtop bottle of scotch into his tightie whities and aboard the ship? No. Did I mention that I suspected it might still there because he kept ordering cokes during the show and then doing a half-butt cheek-lift in the seat? Nooooo! I kept that information to myself, good friend that I am. We were quite impressed that he had the forethought to get one with a plastic cap. You go, boy!

 

 

Edited June 26, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

Wow! I just compared your Mendenhall Glacier photo to one that I took in 2005. I wish I could post photos, because the difference is marked. I'm glad that we're going back, next year. I just can't urge people, enough, to see this wonder before it's gone. :(

 

I'm so enjoying your photos. The whale photos are priceless! Thanks for taking the time! ~ LL

 

If you want to email it to me I will post it

mjcrouch@4dv.net

 

The guide did say that he remembers playing there as a boy and the glacier went much much further out....he was actually more descriptive than much, much but he showed me a patch of ground and that is rather hard for me to do in this post.

[sunset seekers]

Hi Jen,

 

I am enjoying your review and photos so much, you make me want to go to Alaska again and we have been there three times already. Our first time was on the Radiance in 2003. I am wondering just how many people are waiting for your next post as I am. We will be on the Radiance again in April 2012 sailing Hawaii. I think you should come, you sound like you are a lot of fun and I would love to meet you some day. We were on the last cruise before the dry dock.

 

Thank you for taking time to do this post.

 

Rose :)

[jennat]

Disclaimer: This portion of the post is rated R. If you are easily offended (okay actually it would take a lot more than this to offend most people) so let's say if you are incredibly sheltered or underage, you should probably scroll past this. You know that makes you want to look, huh?

 

 

At 10:30 tonight was Quest. Our friends had never attended a Quest so we talked them into going. It is always fun but I think it loses something on the bigger ships. I like it better on this size ship where everyone can get involved. We teamed up with a really nice group and took 3rd place. Yea us!

 

 

 

 

 

Look at that cheater on the end with only one bra on his head. That's totally how we won 3rd, by cheating!

 

After Quest we went to Matt Yee's Diva sing along

You are probably thinking we look like we know what we are doing. That's because IT IS THE SAME SHOW NIGHT AFTER NIGHT!

 

Matt Yee

 

After 6 songs and the bell of redundancy clinging in our ears, we headed off to bed. Tomorrow, Skagway, my favorite port on the CRUISE (not overall).

[gangof 5]

I love the review and the photo's. Did you learn anything from the tour on how to take better photo's or did they just take you places where you could get great photo's. Also did you go to any specialty restaurants?

[corky2491]

The second photo is of the Solarium Pool. Sure looks green to me. But the water at the shallow edges look clear - So, is the deep part of the pool painted green???

 

I believe that it may be the way the light hits the pool... Not sure, but I have seen this happen at certain times of the day on other ships.

[ladylawyer]

If you want to email it to me I will post it

mjcrouch@4dv.net

 

The guide did say that he remembers playing there as a boy and the glacier went much much further out....he was actually more descriptive than much, much but he showed me a patch of ground and that is rather hard for me to do in this post.

 

Done! Thanks!!! As I mentioned, in my email ... more rock, less glacier. :(

[jennat]

I love the review and the photo's. Did you learn anything from the tour on how to take better photo's or did they just take you places where you could get great photo's. Also did you go to any specialty restaurants?

 

We actually learned a lot from the photo tour. One hint he gave us on how to take fast moving objects was to put it on rapid take (continuous shooting), he said that keeps the aperature? open the least amount and helps you capture the image with less blurr....

He also taught us about the white balance. He indicated that when taking photos of glaciers, your camera wants to blend all the different whites, you can take the +/- into the negative to combat this. He talked about the rule of thirds and mostly about "making a photo" not just "taking a photo" Just the composition. He did talk about aperatures and shutter speed and how they impact a photo and how to play with them. He was really good. Don't judge him by the quality of my photos ;):D Half mine were taken with a point and shoot. But we did use the rapid photo and the WB a lot during the cruise.

We went to Chops (on day 2) Rita's day 3 and day 7 and Samba on day 6.

Chops is always good, Rita's was okay, have enough of their margs and you don't notice their food quality and Samba was good (my hubby and friends liked it better that I did)

[jennat]

Done! Thanks!!! As I mentioned, in my email ... more rock, less glacier. :(

 

2005

 

2011

 

Look at the bottle neck part....a lot smaller.

He said it was 60 ft per year for many years.

 

Found this....

656 feet lost on its east side in 2004 and 269 feet lost on its west side in 2005 -

[jennat]

My husband just corrected me....

It is the RED DOG in Juneau and the Red ONION in Skagway (coming soon)

Opps!

 

He also is telling me, (kindof bossy he is) that Dave was the photographer and guide for the day and Jim was the boat Captain.

 

Anything else......honeyyyyyyy? ;)

 

One more thing, Keith didn't come over to me because of the flash, we were just chatting because he we were in the front row. He said that the flash was no big deal at all but inferred that smuggling was a serious offense. Just sayin'

Edited June 26, 2011 by jennat

[jennat]

Hi Jen,

 

I am enjoying your review and photos so much, you make me want to go to Alaska again and we have been there three times already. Our first time was on the Radiance in 2003. I am wondering just how many people are waiting for your next post as I am. We will be on the Radiance again in April 2012 sailing Hawaii. I think you should come, you sound like you are a lot of fun and I would love to meet you some day. We were on the last cruise before the dry dock.

 

Thank you for taking time to do this post.

 

Rose :)

 

 

Thanks ;)

Better yet, you come on the oasis in Oct :D

[lakelorain]

Thanks for your entertaining review. It brings back memories of our first cruise/tour on the Radiance. We missed the ship because we were stuck in Chicago along with 18 other passengers. RC arranged for all of us to meet the ship in Ketchikan and took very good care of us. Unfortunately we missed the first sea day so we didn't have enough ship time to really enjoy the Radiance. Hopefully we'll get back there to do a repeat in the next few years.