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Cruise Diary Volendam Inside Passage 8/11


swannie

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Hello all,

Back from the above trip, absolutely splendid. I kept a journal during the trip, so I thought I'd share it here. This is not a critique or a review, there are plenty of wonderful examples of those on this site. Suffice to say that we were beyond thrilled with the entire experience. A little background info... I sailed with my boyfriend Mike and my brother Carl. Mike and I were in rm 7044, Class A verandah cabin. My brother had a similar cabin down the hall. I am a massage therapist who works at a spa in Vegas. This was my "my turn" vacation, as I call it. Here's the first installment. If you want to ask me any specific questions about the ship/experience, please feel free.

 

 

8/12/04 evening, first day at sea

 

What an incredible experience. This is beyond what we expected! I'm sitting on the balcony, listening to the wake of the ship far below me, it's white foam undulating in the ambient light of the ship. It's warm enough that a turtleneck and sweatshirt keep me cozy for the moment. this morning at 6:30 am, we had breakfast in our room, then Mike went back to sleep and I did my Tai chi-like exercises on the balcony, gently swaying back and forth with the ship, stretching my joints, finding my balance and alignment in hips, feet, ankles, knees. Then a bath in our little tub with the jets. I went back out on the balcony then, and cried a little with joy.

Last night, their was a meteor shower. Mike was up on deck every other hour. I joined him after midnight for a while, on the uppermost unlit skydeck. The meteors I did see were spectacular, long bright trails across the sky. A bunch of teenagers, laughing and exploring the ship, burst out onto the deck. When they saw our ghostly forms standing on the deck, they screamed and laughed. They weren't sure if we were real!

Today we watched whales pluming and spouting near the ship, against a background of blue-grey mountains with white mist at their bases.

Went down to the jewelry sale and got an 18kt gold bracelet for $26.

Last night we ate at the Pinnacle Grill, one of the best all around meals any of us had ever had. The smoked fish melted in my mouth. It was all unbelievably fresh and prepared impeccably.

Tomorrow is our first port, Juneau, after cruising Tracy Arm first thing in the morning. I'm getting a hot-stone massage mid-morning.

This is the most relaxed and happy I've felt in a long time. Mike keeps looking at me and saying "Thank You" (for planning the trip). It's like being on a honeymoon. We all agree we have to do this again next year, somehow.

Dressing up at night is so much fun: to do the whole nine yards; formal dress, hair, makeup, jewelry. Even Mike is enjoying it and he looks handsome!

 

8/13 Tracey Arm, Juneau

7:00 am

Heading into Tracey Arm, the water is dotted with ice floes.

Did my exercise out on the balcony this morning, in between photographing the sunrise.

Ordered room service again this morning. I could get used to this! As Mike said, if you tell the people in room service they got something wrong, it's like a point of honor for them. The man seemed genuinely upset. We'd ordered an english muffin and thought they'd forgotten it, until it tumbled out on the floor when Mike opened his napkin.

The food portions are small, which is actually incredibly refreshing, as opposed to the American "stuff yourself" way of eating. Yesterday we were true Hobbits. We had first and second breakfast, and 3 dinners! And still didn't feel stuffed at the end of the day!

The floes are getting bigger, and each one glows a pale blue green. I need my paints!

 

 

9:30 am

I think crying is going to be a daily occurrence. On our way back out of Tracey Arm, spent the morning bundled up with Michael on the bow, watching beautiful blue-lit glaciers floating by, tiny brown harbor seal heads bobbing. All the way up to Sawyer Glacier. Like a mountain of sparkling crushed ice poured down a valley, surrounded by mountains and snow fields.

Nothing to do except take pictures and feed my soul with beauty.

Then to the Java bar for a latte! And in an hour I go downstairs to the spa for my hot stone massage!

 

To be continued...

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beautiful words...nature is indeed something wonderful to behold. Glad you enjoyed your cruise. Alaska is at the top of our list..just want to have the time to also do a land portion..so waiting for DH to have more vacation time before going.

 

Your descriptions are beautiful and peaceful..sounds like you really enjoyed the experience..looking forward to your next installment.

 

we will be on the volendam later this year..anxious to hear how you enjoyed your experience.

 

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with us!

 

Peggy Sue

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8/14 7:30 am

My massage was nice, had a long talk with the therapist about the pros and cons of working on a cruise ship. She works 12 hour days! I can't imagine. You could feel in her hands how tired they were. Still, it was a nice treat.

Then on to Capt. Larry's whale watch. Capt. Larry was definitely a character. Long greasy grey hair, huge white beard, black hat with whale pins on it. There wasn't a huge amount of whale activity, but eventually we sidled up to a humpback and cut the engine. It was amazing watching that huge submarince hulk surfacing and spouting.

At times, I was so focused on trying to get a good picture, I forgot to actually look at it! It was very close to the boat. Driving away, looking back at the area we just left, we could see the whale's tail flipping in the sunshine, looking just like the pictures.

A little shopping, a sleepy dinner at the Lido, then bed.

This morning we arrived in Skagway. I'm looking out over the docks, the small rugged town and beautiful mountains. Quite different from the big, sprawling touristy Juneau. Today we will rent a car and drive into the Yukon!

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8/15 7:30 am

 

Well, Skagway was a bit touristy too, but that's OK. We did rent a car and drove it into the Yukon, and saw some incredible scenery along the way. Beautiful snowcapped toothy mountains, with lakes at the bottom colored by that strange species of algae that turns them a brilliant jade green.

We ended up at the Cinnamon Cache, having wonderful old-fashioned chicken and ham sandwiches on thick slices of homemade bread. The owner sat and chatted with us. She was very nice. Murray from the website (Cruisecritic) is a friend of hers, designed her website as well as his. She's a little stunned by the amount of people coming her way because of Cruisecritic.com.

When we got back into town Mike and I spent an hour or two hunting the stores for that special something. Again, all the best stores were closed. The ones that appeared to have truly native craftwork. We vowed to shop early in Ketchikan!

Dinner in the dining room with our British tablemates. We're starting to relax and have fun together!

After dinner Mike and I went to the ship's jewelry store. I finally found a little sapphire and diamond slide to put on my necklace. It was a big self-indulgence, but it was marked down considerably. Mike literally fell asleep in the jewelry store while I was shopping!

Sent him up to bed, then I went and watched part of the Filipino crew show. I was so touched to see it standing room only! They did some lovely traditional dances, and a couple of the men came out and sang contemporary songs. The first one was amazing! He played his guitar and sang so beautifully. Better than most of the pop-stars out there. He needs to put out a CD!

Now it's the next morning and we're heading to Glacier Bay. I'm out on the balcony in my robe. The scenery is beautiful, but I don't think we're there yet. I don't see anything that looks like glaciers.

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8/15 11:20 am

 

More tears of joy this morning, and another "Thank You" from Michael. Out on deck in fierce winds this morning, watching beautiful snow capped mountains and blue striated glaciers. When the cultural interpreter came over the loudspeaker to welcome us to her ancestors' homeland, I was filled with gratitude and humility. I also gained deepened respect for Holland America, that they stayed away from one of the glaciers out of respect for the harbor seals. The ship paused in front of Marjorie Glacier for about an hour, so we could listen to it crack and see it calve. A tremendous flock of sea birds were gathered at it's base where a powerful current was streaming. I wondered if they ever get caught by the falling ice.

In a couple of hours, the air got so warm that I am now back in the cabin to shed a few layers of clothing.

 

2:00 pm Mike and I laid in bed for half an hour. I closed my eyes and allowed my awareness to go to those tight painful pockets in my abdomen, my chest, allowed myself to feel them, stroke them softly, imagined their edges to be soft misty clouds, gently expanding. Felt the energy rising through my body. My lungs feel clearer. Perhaps I am finally ready to be over this bronchitis that has plagued me for weeks.

 

11:20 pm Wandered around the ship for a while, had the bow to myself and some incredible scenery leaving Glacier Bay. Had to have a coffee with Kahlua.

Back to the room for a real nap. When I woke up, Mike was still asleep, so I went to visit with Carl. We ordered room service, then stood out on the balcony to an incredible show of humpback whales spouting, diving, breaching, tail-bobbing...beautiful!

Another formal dinner tonight. Tonight was the Parade of Baked Alaska. It was very cute, but some of the staff looked bored. Others hammed it up. You gotta wonder. Mike and I went downstairs and had our portraits taken, then wandered into the show. Cheesy pianist. Left after 10 minutes.

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Thank you for sharing your cruise with us - it is such a pleasant reminder why we are so happy on a cruise ship. It can be such a magical experience. :)

 

I'm so glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise.

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8/16 5:00 pm

 

Forgot to mention yesterday a lovely lecture by the Native American speaker, telling us all about her tribal history and customs. She had that wonderful soft slow native accent that speaks of simplicity of serenity.

Back in the cabin last night, finally raided the mini-bar for something other than water. Treated myself to a glass of cognac. Hey, it's a cruise!

Today was our last port, Ketchikan. Spent the first couple of hours shopping. Got some wonderful deals. After going into one semi-high pressure jewelry store where the lady tried to talk me into buying buying some tanzanite I couldn't afford, we found another shop with some sweet people who helped me find something in my price range. I bought a beautiful green topaz slide for my gold chain. Much nicer than the sapphire one I bought on the ship. I think I'll return that. Then she practically threw in a gold forget-me-not pendant.

Then on to a great craft store where Mike got an incredible deal on a 4 foot totem pole! They're really just giving stuff away at this point. It's the end of the season.

Then on to our flight-seeing tour. We took a float plane through Misty Fjords Nat'l Monument. Flying in among sheer mountain cliffs, waterfalls and alpine lakes; so close I was a little scared. Never been on a plane that small. Then landing briefly on a mountain lake, drinking crystal clear snow-melt water from the stream. Breathtaking!Mike's arm is literally holding the plane ashore!

Afterwards, a little more window shopping. At the end of the day the jewelry store people were practically hauling us through their doors trying to sell us stuff. Spent the last hour in a local museum. Nice enough for what it was, but growing up with the Museum of Natural History in NYC, this just wasn't that interesting.

Now we're back on the ship. Carl's fishing trip was a success. Caught his limit of salmon, 6 fish, getting it smoked and sent home.

We made a reservation for the Pinnacle Grill again for our last night.

God, what an incredible experience this has been. Our first day seems like light-years away. One more sea day, then leave the next morning, but spending a day and a half in Vancouver! A regular hotel room just won't be the same. The luxury of this cruise has been unreal. Breakfast in our rooms every morning, cabin steward cleaning our room nearly every time we leave it empty, putting away our things, turning down the bed. Having someone else do our laundry, (had to pay extra for that of course) the verandah! The friendly and impeccable service; they don't let you lift a finger, even at the Lido (buffet-style) restaurant. They carry your tray to the table if you let them. I won't kid myself that all the crew love their jobs and don't resent the "wealthy Americans" but an awful lot of them are pretty convincing. (note: after the cruise, Mike told me he had a private conversation with a steward. He did indeed love his job, and showed Mike a picture of his home and family. Mike said it looked like a beautiful home. The man said it was made possible by his job here on the ship, although he of course missed his family tremendously.)

And I truly feel like this was OK for me to do. Working in the spa industry as I do, doing this sort of thing for others all day, this is OK. I deserved this. The only thing that was missing for me would have been an experience that was a little more personal, spiritual, healing. A sense of real connection with fellow passengers, a deeper meaning. This is more about pleasure and self-indulgence. Nothing more. But that's OK, that's all it's meant to be.

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8/17

8:20 am

 

Dinner at the Lido, much better than last night. Then I went downstairs and returned my sapphire pendant. Went to the little movie theatre and and saw Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind. Interesting movie! I think the basic question of the movie was, if you had a chance to do a relationship over again, even if it failed, would you? I might go see it again today.

Back up in the room, we were treated to an incredible display of a night-time thunderstorm. Two cruise-ships were going in the opposite direction, lit up like little crystal palaces while the lightning lit up the sky with flashes and long arcing fingers. Mike set up the video camera on a tripod and filmed it for over an hour. I treated myself to another cognac. We tried going up to the desert extravaganza but it was too crowded.

Now it's morning. We're at sea heading back to Vancouver. The sea is grey-blue, the clouds are a silvery white and grey with the sun shining through. We've had such amazing weather. Except for early mornings, warm and sunny, even hot! This has been a perfect cruise. Might go down and play "win a cruise Bingo". Have to maximize our chances!

 

1:40 pm

 

Played bingo, didn't win. But there's still the lottery tonight that we have 3 tickets for! After the bingo game, there was the disembarkation talk and a goodbye to the crew. Many of the different crew came out on stage and sang a song led by the singer/dancer troupe. They were all laughing, smiling, waving, dancing. I got misty-eyed again! Gave them a big Woo-hoo!

Lunch and an afternoon nap. Now out on the balcony watching some rather picturesque towns go by on Vancouver Island.

My bronchitis seems to be almost gone. Just getting ever-so-slightly better each day to the point where I'm just clearing my throat a little instead of actively coughing.

Overall I don't seem to have gained that much weight, definitely a bit softer. In fact this whole week has had a softening effect: on me and Michael, on my thoughts, my emotions, how could it not? I'm sitting here listening to the soft rush of the ship's wake, watching the occasional sea-bird fly by, rocking ever so slightly from side to side in my lounge chair.

 

7:00 pm

 

Saw orcas this afternoon!

Mike and I went to high tea. Very elegant and nice, to be served tea and little tidbits while the trio played, although it reminded me a little spookily of Titanic.

Then Mike and I went to the movie, Eternal Sunshine again. Mike left after half an hour w/a stomachache.

Now I'm back in the room starting to pack and organize. It's hard. I'm coming across things from my "real life" receipts from my classes, the faint scent of oils we use at the spa, it all seems so drab, so colorless. I have to get ready for dinner in a few minutes, but I'm out on the balcony again relishing the evening light on the soft liquid waves.

 

 

8/18

 

12:20 am

 

Dinner at the Pinnacle, wore my new pendant with my neckchain. It was very nice, but the second time around I ordered different items and I didn't like them as much as the ones I had the first night. Will it be like that for subsequent cruises? Will the next one feel as magical, as special? I'll never be a "virgin cruiser" again, so perhaps not.

The bags are packed and in the hallway. Mike and I opened a bottle of sparkling wine and had a quiet, romantic together time.

Can't describe the stars without using cliched words like velvety, pincushion, etc. Twinkling lights on the shoreline, a lot more signs of civilization. Guess we didn't win the free cruise lottery or we would have heard by now.

Good night dark sea. Good night lapping foam, soft breeze. Good night gentle peace.

 

 

8/19

 

3:10 pm

 

We're at the airport now, after a day and a half in Vancouver. Leaving the ship was truly difficult. We went to our hotel, a dreary place in downtown Vancouver, evidently a re-modeled apartment building. Lousy mattress, tiny bathroom, fluorescent lights; the contrast to what we'd just come from was hard not to think about. But it made me appreciate what we'd had on a HAL ship even more. For example, this hotel room was at least 1 1/2 times the size of our ship's cabin, and about 1/10th as comfortable. The genius of the design of the stateroom, with it's shelves and closet design, the vanity, the storage space, even the bathroom left you feeling truly comfortable. And the mattress! Mike said it was a Sealy European. Incredibly comfortable. Last night on the cheap hotel mattress I was back to tossing and turning, waking up with a backache. I would go on, but it would be pointless.

After settling in at the hotel, we walked to the aquarium in Stanley Park. It was a perfectly respectable city aquarium, but a big mistake to do after the cruise. They had exhibits with seals, sea lions, otters and beluga whales, and as wonderful as it was to see them up close, it was incredibly depressing to see them swimming in circles in small pools surrounded by screaming children, after seeing them in their natural environment. We walked back to the hotel and collapsed, taking a long nap.

 

We woke up feeling better and went on to have some more unique and pleasant experiences in the city of Vancouver. Slowly adjusting to to being on land, preparing for home, work and our daily routine. Never far from my mind is thoughts about planning for the next cruise, how to afford it, when we can go.

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