LIVE from the Sapphire - 14 day Voyage of the Glaciers, August 31 - September 14, 2024.

[theliterateleprechaun]

ONE MORE WEEK! 

 

It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been cruising, the length of our journey, or even our destination - we’re always excited to get on a Princess ship. 

 

Anyone else do countdowns? Ours started 115 days ago. When we sense one of us has had a tough day, we remind each other of “the days until…” we walk down the aisle again.

 

 

 

I’m sure we aren’t the only ones who buckle up for road bumps on the embarkation countdown. Maturity (almost 54 and 60) and experience (103 countries according to ‘been’ app) cause us to look at each other and laugh when things go wrong. It wasn’t always like this, but it sure is better for the blood pressure. 

 

Things come in threes, right? 

 

Day 115 was the day my healthy 53-year-old brother-in-law passed away in his sleep … on holiday in Mexico. Heart attack. Live each day like it’s your last! You never know. Oh, and don’t forget to kiss your loved one good night. 

 

Three weeks ago, I was diagnosed with ocular shingles in my left eye. It sounds nasty, but I was able to get a prescription for Valacyclovir before the blisters appeared on my eyeball, so other than blurry vision and itchy lashes in my left eye, it wasn’t too bad. It’s the third time (2010, 2017, and 2024) and I knew the symptoms. You saw the pattern, too, right? What’s with the ‘every seven years’?! 

 

So, I’m waiting for the third road bump…..

 

  

 

 

Ok. Let’s end this post with some good news! WE GOT OUR MEDALLIONS. That’s not so exciting for most of you, but for Canadians this is big news. It’s our first-ever cruise we’ve had our medallions mailed to the house. I felt like a kid at Christmas! 

 

We’re travelling with my parents (in their early eighties) and my husband’s auntie (86). Cruises out of Vancouver are our best options at this stage as the thought of flying doesn’t appeal to our travelling companions any longer. From our front door to the terminal takes 20 minutes

 

I’m excited to cruise again on the Sapphire and would love to have you along for the cruise. It’s my first ‘live’ reporting and I welcome the support and pointers. If you’re along for an armchair cruise, ‘hello’! If you are travelling with us, don’t hesitate to stop us and introduce yourself. Steve will be doing all the games in the piazza and talking to everyone in sight. You’ll notice him; he always wears shorts and a baseball cap. I’ll be the introverted extrovert on the sidelines with a Kindle and a coffee in hand, checking that my parents and Auntie Marg are happy.

[LACruiser88]

Have a great cruise!  We do love the Sapphire and her crew. 

 

I started doing "Live" Blogs after the pandemic startup and have enjoyed doing them since then.  

[Wink87]

I'm looking forward to following along! We sail on Discovery to Alaska in a month.

[theliterateleprechaun]

4 minutes ago, Wink87 said:

I'm looking forward to following along! We sail on Discovery to Alaska in a month.

I haven't been on the Discovery yet! I hope you'll post. We're hoping to meet up with three FANTASTIC crew members on the Discovery when it's in port on Thursday, Sept. 12 in Ketchikan. You'll have to look out for Ronnie from India (bartender/wine steward), Hilda from India (waitress/hostess), and Juliet from the Philippines (waitress) as they have made our previous trips so memorable. Have a great cruise! Thanks for following along. 🙂

[Cairns Cruisers]

Looking forward to your “live”, we are following you on Sapphire Sept 14th.

[theliterateleprechaun]

22 minutes ago, Cairns Cruisers said:

Looking forward to your “live”, we are following you on Sapphire Sept 14th.

Thank you! What a great cruise you've got lined up. If there's anything I can't fit in my suitcase, I know who to leave it for. 😅 Have you been to Alaska before?

[elaine5]

We booked 14 days on Sapphire in Alaska for 2025! Following along-I want to know everything! Elaine

[theliterateleprechaun]

16 minutes ago, elaine5 said:

We booked 14 days on Sapphire in Alaska for 2025! Following along-I want to know everything! Elaine

How exciting, Elaine! Thanks for following. Once we sail, if there's anything I'm not covering that you'd like to know, please ask. 

[NancyIL]

Looking forward to reading your live report, as my daughter and I will be on your Whittier to Vancouver leg.

[theliterateleprechaun]

1 hour ago, NancyIL said:

Looking forward to reading your live report, as my daughter and I will be on your Whittier to Vancouver leg.

I just checked the weather and it looks like a dry day for Whittier! Are you coming from the airport or the lodge? I'd love to stay at the lodge pre or post-cruise. One day .... Thanks for following. We'll have to meet up. 

[NancyIL]

19 minutes ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

I just checked the weather and it looks like a dry day for Whittier! Are you coming from the airport or the lodge? I'd love to stay at the lodge pre or post-cruise. One day .... Thanks for following. We'll have to meet up. 

A “dry” day in any port will be welcome news! However, it’s a bit early for an accurate weather forecast for a cruise sailing 2 weeks from now. I’ll hope for the best and prepare for the worst! 
 

 We’ll stay at a hotel in Anchorage the 2 nights before we sail, and take the ACT Big Bus from the airport to Whittier.

 

 http://www.alaskacruisetransfer.com

Edited August 25 by NancyIL

[Cairns Cruisers]

23 hours ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

Thank you! What a great cruise you've got lined up. If there's anything I can't fit in my suitcase, I know who to leave it for. 😅 Have you been to Alaska before?

First Alaska trip and second cruise,we did a Singapore/ Malaysia/Thailand cruise in 2015.

[theliterateleprechaun]

Alaska governor declares disaster after Ketchikan landslide kills 1, hospitalizes 3 others | CBC News

[wallyj]

The roll call for this sailing has been on the quiet side. Thank you for doing a live.

 

 

[theliterateleprechaun]

35 minutes ago, wallyj said:

The roll call for this sailing has been on the quiet side. Thank you for doing a live.

 

 

Good Morning from sunny Vancouver! Glad to have you following along. 

[3 WI Cruisers]

Have a great cruise! I'll be following along as we are on the Sapphire, Vancouver-Whittier, next May. 

[theliterateleprechaun]

13 hours ago, 3 WI Cruisers said:

Have a great cruise! I'll be following along as we are on the Sapphire, Vancouver-Whittier, next May. 

Great to have you following along! We love the Sapphire and Alaska. You've got a great trip ahead of you. 😃

[Auntiejo]

We did the NB on Sapphire in June. Looking forward to following along and reliving our great memories. Enjoy!

[theliterateleprechaun]

26 minutes ago, Auntiejo said:

We did the NB on Sapphire in June. Looking forward to following along and reliving our great memories. Enjoy!

Thanks for following! Reliving cruise memories is wonderful. We do it often. 

[talkorpi]

I'll be on Sapphire for the repositioning cruise at the end of the month - following along! Have a fantastic time 🙂

[theliterateleprechaun]

1 hour ago, talkorpi said:

I'll be on Sapphire for the repositioning cruise at the end of the month - following along! Have a fantastic time 🙂

Fantastic! We did the Sapphire repositioning in April (Vancouver to Hawaii to Alaska to Vancouver) and loved it. It was actually better weather in Alaska than Hawaii!!!! Have a wonderful cruise. Thank you. 

[hpeabody]

@theliterateleprechaun  If I may ask a favor please.  I have an upcoming cruise on the Sapphire.  I would like to know if Sapphire has the sensor light in the closet.  My last 2 cruises on 2 different ships did and it annoyed me to no end.  Please report back here.  Thank you.  I love the Sapphire.  Enjoy your cruise!

[theliterateleprechaun]

4 minutes ago, hpeabody said:

@theliterateleprechaun  If I may ask a favor please.  I have an upcoming cruise on the Sapphire.  I would like to know if Sapphire has the sensor light in the closet.  My last 2 cruises on 2 different ships did and it annoyed me to no end.  Please report back here.  Thank you.  I love the Sapphire.  Enjoy your cruise!

I will check and report back! One of our cruises recently had those silly sensors and our cabin steward put bandaids over the sensor. Thank you. We love the Sapphire, too. 

[theliterateleprechaun]

Let's get this party started! 😊 @bill11 @wallyj and anyone else who wants to meet up... Steve and I will be having a frozen margarita and enjoying it at 3pm in front of The Mermaid's Tail Bar by Neptune's Reef and Pool on deck 14. Steve will have on a white baseball cap, shorts and a striped short-sleeved dress shirt. I'll have on white capris and a white blouse. Come say 'hi', even if you don't stop for a quick drink. 

[NancyIL]

2 hours ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

Let's get this party started! 😊 @bill11 @wallyj and anyone else who wants to meet up... Steve and I will be having a frozen margarita and enjoying it at 3pm in front of The Mermaid's Tail Bar by Neptune's Reef and Pool on deck 14. Steve will have on a white baseball cap, shorts and a striped short-sleeved dress shirt. I'll have on white capris and a white blouse. Come say 'hi', even if you don't stop for a quick drink. 

 

Have a great northbound cruise! We'll see you a week from today in Vancouver!!