Random Notes from the Navigator, Vancouver-Vancouver, LIVE

[Zqueeze1]

... So as we stayed put in the Strait of Georgia we repaired to Compass Rose, heeding the recommendations from this message board (thanks, Z and TB) by asking for Gabriela's station (No. 1). Gabriela (Romania, five-year Regent veteran) and her partner Banyar (Burma, four years with Regent) were great, and had us through four courses in a blazing 85 minutes. Our meals were scrumptious...

 

Really glad we could help, but the real credit belongs to the notorious dark chocolate lady, 1Teach53 (Karen) and her cool husband, John, who recommended Gabriela during our cruise in April. Gabriela had introduced herself by saying, "while you are here with us, you are family (TB's eyeballs are sweating)." Please tell her that Roberto and Pam say hello and that we miss her special Asian appetizers (dim sums [?] and similar to a Korean yaki mandoo), then proceed to ask her for some!

 

Bon voyage to you and your lovely family.

 

Z and TB

 

P.S. You need to find "Elvis" or a drink.

[Mr Rumor]

Forgot to close the drapes, so I woke up to the early light this morning, and a sweet Inland Passage view. . . with tranquil waters. Then I wondered, were my ears playing tricks on me yesterday? Did Captain Ubaldo really relay the forecast of 40 mph winds and ten foot seas today. . . in the Inland Passage?

 

Well I just saw General Manager Massimo in the reception area, and he confirmed yesterday's forecast, but added we won't face the high winds/seas until after 12. Of course weather conditions can change, which I'm hoping for, for DW's sake.

 

TC2, you would be most impressed with Ginny's arsenal. I've already applied the patch behind her right ear, and she has her Stugeron, just in case the patch doesn't do the trick. We purchased a load of Stugeron in Funchal on our TA in 2012 (the med isn't available for purchase in the U.S.), and she guards each of the remaining tabs in her cache. She considers Stugeron her most effective tool for warding off a bad attack of seasickness.

 

Roberto and Pam, thanks for checking in! I will definitely relay your greetings to Gabriela, and in the same breath mention the Asian appetizers. They sound like a real treat.

 

As I type this in the computer room--still a very quiet place at 8:30 a.m.--I'm continuing to love the Inland Passage views. But I better end this now, as the first breakfast rumbles are happening and want to see if the girls are up and dressed.

 

More later today!

 

Rich

Edited May 22, 2014 by Mr Rumor

[1982CruzStart]

Just scored an "upgrade" to bus one, scheduled to depart for the ship in an hour, so I'll keep this short. Another gorgeous day in the works in Vancouver. Looking forward to a beautiful sailaway at 5 p.m.

 

Breakfast was just fine, but a little scaled down from previous free Regent night breakfasts (no pastries, not that we needed to be tempted). DW was in the mood for a walk, so the three of us explored Robson (shopping district) and Burrard, winding up at Burrard Landing, where we got a glimpse of the Navigator. DW random observations along the way: 1.) So many ultra-clean cars on the road (all the rain? fastidious owners?) and 2.) So many beautiful, longhaired, fit young ladies walking about (I was thinking the same, but glad she mentioned first). I'll add--very few smokers. Would love to return some day, and would stay at the Sheraton again. Was particularly impressed with the personable young folks at the front desks at both the North and South towers (the Sheraton is big, as in 730 rooms big).

 

I am so glad you enjoyed our beautiful city of Vancouver and so happy you were there when the weather was great. Being biased, of course i think Vancouver in great weather one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I hope you get the chance to come back.

Have a great cruise.

[Mr Rumor]

1982CruzStart, would love to return to your beautiful Vancouver, and hope to make it happen within the next couple of years!

 

I was very curious to see who would be attempting to fill Terry Breen's shoes on this cruise, so made a point of attending Joe Kess' enrichment lecture in Galileo's. That's right, the lounge on Deck 11, not the theater. The theater was not available this morning due to a Jean Ann Ryan cast rehearsal. It was also closed for rehearsal last night, and will be closed again tonight. The new cast is obviously being put through its rehearsal paces. (Alas, the Ryan troupe is only scheduled to perform two shows on our cruise, "Aquarius" and "Cirque Navigator." And, CD Lorraine is not sure about Beatles night in Galileo's. We're not telling Shauna that. . .)

 

The Galileo's setting actually turned out to be just right this morning, even though it was SRO in the lounge. From my seat in the back I had a marvelous 180-degree view of the Inland Passage as Dr. Joe tackled his meaty topic, "Discovering Alaska and the Pacific Northwest," his first of five talks he'll be squeezing in on our weeklong cruise.

 

I liked him the moment he left his lectern and wandered several rows up the aisle to deliver his talk off the cuff. I have a pet peeve regarding learned Regent lecturers who are content to dryly read their talks off their computers. "Oh, I'm too loosey-goosey for that!" Dr. Kess exclaimed to me afterwards.

 

He covered a great deal of territory in his talk that I won't attempt to capsule here (I didn't take extensive notes, reminding myself I am on vacation!). But as I sit typing this I find myself mulling the fact that it is only now, hundreds of years after the first exploration probes and due to the ice melt up north, that headway is being made on a new Northwest passage route that would cut thousands of kilometers in the journey from Asia to Europe and, in Dr. Joe's words, would "far surpass the Panama Canal in its possibilities." Leading the way at the moment: The Chinese and their armada of freighters.

 

Rich

Edited May 22, 2014 by Mr Rumor

[1teach53]

Really glad we could help, but the real credit belongs to the notorious dark chocolate lady, 1Teach53 (Karen) and her cool husband, John, who recommended Gabriela during our cruise in April. Gabriela had introduced herself by saying, "while you are here with us, you are family (TB's eyeballs are sweating)." Please tell her that Roberto and Pam say hello and that we miss her special Asian appetizers (dim sums [?] and similar to a Korean yaki mandoo), then proceed to ask her for some!

 

Bon voyage to you and your lovely family.

 

Z and TB

 

P.S. You need to find "Elvis" or a drink.

 

Hey there Z, thanks for the credit on the most wonderful Gabriela find!!! Oh how I miss her!!!

Yessss, love those Asian appetizers, wish I had some now to go with my "little pink drink"!!!!

Mr. Rumor, give Gabriela a big kiss on each cheek from Karen & John.

We will be on the Navg Aug 20, but I think she said she would not, so sad.

Also I think Elvis went home after our cruise in April, but check.

Have fun!!

Karen

[Mr Rumor]

Karen, not sure about the big kiss (Rumor can be a shy kind of guy), but maybe a quick hello-from-Karen-and-John peck on Gabriela's cheek with a Shauna hug and "Bless you, friend" (her favorite greeting) thrown in for good measure?!

 

We did something a while ago we've never done on a Regent ship--have lunch in Compass Rose. The Pool Deck was out due to a light rain (a small number braved it outside) and La Veranda was all but overrun--also, would have had to sit in the depths of Prime 7. CR, by contrast, was an oasis of calm, plus we had a great view of the pilot boat pick up the pilot. That meant we had gotten through the Inside Passage and are now in the open sea. And that, in turns, means. . . the predicted rolling and pitching, which could last into and through the night. DW has already dipped into her prized store of Stugeron, and she and Shauna are bedded down (daughter was due for a nap anyway). I'm pretty oblivious to motion, so I'm debating what to do next. Hmmm, maybe a movie back in our suite, if I keep the sound down?

 

Rich

[xrvlcruiser]

Hi Rich,

 

Is Terry returning to the Navigator at some point after your cruise?

 

As always, I'm enjoying your postings . . . . sounds like things are going well.

 

Have a great trip and know I'll be reading.

 

Peggy

[Mr Rumor]

Hi, Peggy! I had been meaning to ask about Terry Breen, and to confirm the date of her return, so thanks for asking. She had originally planned to rejoin the Navigator on May 28 but I learned today that she needed to push the date back a few days. She is currently scheduled to return on June 11, and will be with the Navigator for the rest of the Alaska cruising season. Joe Kess, our enrichment lecturer, told me he is only signed up for this cruise, so I don't know will be handling the lecture chores on the May 28 sailing.

 

CD Lorraine, by the way, will be leaving on the 28th, to be replaced by Jamie Logan, with wife Dana as usual handing Assistant CD duties.

 

Well, we were really rocking and rolling for a time this afternoon. But thanks to a combination of patch, Stugeron, and anti-nausea medication, DW was able to join Shauna and me for the tail end of the Captain's Reception, as well as dinner in Compass Rose.

 

And what a feast it was! Our special-order Indian dinner consisted of vegetable curry (for vegetarian Ginny) and chicken and lamb curry for daughter and me, yogurt studded with bits of bell pepper, rice, naan and another type of bread (cracker thin and rolled). Karen, you'll be happy to know that on your and your hubby's behalf I planted smooches on both of Gabriela's cheeks, which she graciously accepted and responded to by giving Shauna a smooch. So we had a love fest going on for a minute in Station One. I also passed on your hello, Z and TB.

 

It was a late-arriving crowd in CR tonight, but Navigator's permanent resident, a k a Navigator's second Captain, was in his usual seat by 6:30 on the dot. Happy to report he is looking great. He'll be turning 90 in just over two months.

 

We get to turn our clocks back an hour tonight, which is timely considering our 8:10 reporting time on the pier in Ketchikan for our Misty Fjords and Wilderness Explorer excursion. A "chance of rain" is forecast, but that's a routine forecast for a town that measures its annual rainfall in feet instead than inches!

 

Rich

Edited May 23, 2014 by Mr Rumor

[Mudhen]

Hi All,

Having been so enjoying your posts. My daughter and I did the Alaskan route last year about this time and loved it. We had terrible weather for the most part, but didn't let it stop us! Our room steward brought us two huge blue "steamer rugs" that we wrapped up in and sat out on our balcony with cocktails or champers, no matter what the weather! Hoping you guys have some blue skies and nice temps! Alaska is magnificent, not matter what the weather!

[xrvlcruiser]

Hi Rich,

 

Thanks for the "Terry" update . . . . glad to hear she'll be back. And to know Jamie's and Dana's as well. And to know the "second Captain" is doing well too.

 

Continue to enjoy!

 

Peggy

[Mr Rumor]

Thanks, Peggy. Mudhen, I like your attitude ("steamer rug" story is great)! It's Alaska, after all, so we won't be sulking either if a fair percentage of our sunshine is of the "liquid" variety. Looking forward to a great day today with our Misty Fjords excursion (our favorite excursion from San Francisco-Vancouver, so we're repeating), the block party, dinner at Prime 7, and finally, the debut of the new Jean Ann Ryan cast with its "Dawning of Aquarius" production. Shauna will be rocking in her front-row seat, for sure!

 

As I alluded to in my first post, we're sailing full this cruise. Of the 490 passengers, gals outnumber the guys, 267-223. No surprise that the most of the passengers (326) are American, or that the United Kingdom is in second, with 65. But I was surprised to see the Netherlands unseat Canada for the bronze, with 33 travelers--no doubt, a Dutch treat for Regent Marketing!

 

Here is the full passenger nationality breakdown:

 

United States, 326

United Kingdom, 65

Netherlands, 33

Canada, 24

Australia, 8

Germany, 5

Colombia, 4

Denmark, 4

Singapore, 4

Venezuela, 3

Belgium, 2

Indonesia, 2

Italy, 2

Peru, 2

Turkey, 2

Argentina, 1

Brazil, 1

South Africa, 1

Uruguay, 1

 

Rich

Edited May 23, 2014 by Mr Rumor

[1teach53]

Hi Rich, we continue to look forward to every post, thank you!!

How do you know the nationality count of passengers? Did I sleep through something on our last cruise? Loved the info!!

If you think of it, ask Gabby if she will still be on board for the Aug 20 cruise to Alaska? I think she told us no, but we can always hope!!

Have fun!!!:D

[Mr Rumor]

The Tlingit have a word to describe the gorgeous weather we enjoyed today in Ketchikan, according to Sonja Alvarez, who supplied the outstanding commentary on our Misty Fjords catamaran excursion. That word is shakdahein, which translates as "morning mist sparkling on a wolf's fur." By the early afternoon, there was nary a droplet remaining on Ketchikan's fur, as blazing sunlight greeting our return from the depths of Misty Fjords (which were in fact misty and chilly as all heck, but all the more captivating because of the conditions). Just to think. . . a scant 24 hours earlier, the rainiest town in America received upwards of four inches of rain. We lucked out!

 

1teach53, I like to spice my reports with lists and numbers now and then, which I get from different onboard sources. Have another number to share: 219, the number of current passengers who have not previously cruised with Regent. That number is far higher than any of our previous Regent cruises, but it doesn't seem shockingly high considering the short length of this cruise. The fact that we have only 17 Titanium, Platinum and Gold members on this cruise seems to suggest that veteran Regent cruises opt for longer cruises, or at least back to backs (in fact, Regent friends of ours on this cruise are doing a back to back to back).

 

So how are Regent newbies rating about their first Regent experience? I'm endeavoring to ask a few. My first three responses:

 

Couple from Michigan (prior cruise experience: Princess): 6. "So-so. Expected a bigger casino, more slots."

 

Couple from the Netherlands (no prior cruise experience): 10. "We like everything. You can get anything you want. Happy people."

 

Mother and daughter, Michigan (prior cruise experience: Radisson, NCL): 9. "Food and service very nice."

 

Rich

[Travelcat2]

Loving your posts. It does not surprise me that there are so many "newbies" on your cruise. Alaska and Caribbean cruises seem to have the most newbies and the least "Gold" or above passengers. Speaking only for myself (Platinum), it isn't as much about short cruises as it is about new ports and avoiding the Navigator. Sorry about that comment but believe that being 100% honest is very important.

 

Enjoyed your comments from the people new to Regent. It sounds like the couple from Michigan did not do their homework and are used to Princess. I find it sad when Regent cannot meet the expectations of new cruisers. When you think about it, how can a ship that holds only 490 passengers have a casino or anything else that would compare to a ship with 2000+ passengers?

 

So glad that you had gorgeous weather in Ketchikan. We had good weather one of the three times we were there. It may be of interest that Vancouver had rain all day today (nice temperatures but lots of rain). Happy to hear that you will return to Vancouver. It is an amazing city and we are so fortunate to be able to drive up there whenever we want to since it is only 50 miles away.

 

In my opinion, while I love Terry Breen, once you have been to Alaska, you do not necessarily need to hang on to every word of an expert because you already know how wonderful Alaska is. I'm glad to hear that she will be returning (actually, I had no doubts - despite the unfounded rumors on the Regent board a few months ago).

 

Looking forward to hearing how Shauna enjoyed the show.

 

I am curious as to whether you have met Massimo. He was new to Regent (from Oceania) on our last Voyager cruise. Any comments you have would be welcome.

[2old4this]

Thanks, Peggy. Mudhen, I like your attitude ("steamer rug" story is great)! It's Alaska, after all, so we won't be sulking either if a fair percentage of our sunshine is of the "liquid" variety. Looking forward to a great day today with our Misty Fjords excursion (our favorite excursion from San Francisco-Vancouver, so we're repeating), the block party, dinner at Prime 7, and finally, the debut of the new Jean Ann Ryan cast with its "Dawning of Aquarius" production. Shauna will be rocking in her front-row seat, for sure!

 

As I alluded to in my first post, we're sailing full this cruise. Of the 490 passengers, gals outnumber the guys, 267-223. No surprise that the most of the passengers (326) are American, or that the United Kingdom is in second, with 65. But I was surprised to see the Netherlands unseat Canada for the bronze, with 33 travelers--no doubt, a Dutch treat for Regent Marketing!

 

Here is the full passenger nationality breakdown:

 

United States, 326

United Kingdom, 65

Netherlands, 33

Canada, 24

Australia, 8

Germany, 5

Colombia, 4

Denmark, 4

Singapore, 4

Venezuela, 3

Belgium, 2

Indonesia, 2

Italy, 2

Peru, 2

Turkey, 2

Argentina, 1

Brazil, 1

South Africa, 1

Uruguay, 1

 

Rich

 

We were given nationality figures like this on our last cruise to the Panama by way of a handout in our mailbox. Seeing one here from Uruguay seems interesting. As I recall there were a few from China on our cruise. Jack

[RachelG]

Glad your weather held out, and that you survived the rough seas. Also so happy that the Captain is doing well. We always enjoy greeting him in the hall and at dinner.

Alaska is amazing, no matter what the weather, but really spectacular if sunny.

[Mr Rumor]

Well, I see that I was unable to perform simple math earlier. 490 (the number of passengers on this cruise) minus 171 (the number of Seven Seas Society members) equals 319 passengers who are cruising Regent for the first time, not 219. Does seem like a whopping number.

 

The block party tonight was a good opportunity to buttonhole several new-to-Regent neighbors and ask them to rate their Regent experience so far:

 

Couple from Florida (previous cruise experience so long ago husband couldn't remember the cruise line): 11 on a scale of 1-10. "State room beyond anything I've experienced. Service: equally magnificent."

 

Single traveler from Canada (previous cruises on Crystal, Holland-America, Celebrity): 10. "Food, staff, comfort all tops."

 

Couple from South Africa (previous Crystal cruisers): 8. "Service, food, facilities excellent." One point deducted for less than great excursion in Ketchikan (the bus broke down).

 

Thanks for the Vancouver weather report, TC. So far we've been cruising between the raindrops--hope our luck continues tomorrow in Juneau (11 a.m. arrival). The sun-drenched Pool Deck was quite a sight at 4 as I headed over to Galileo's for a rare go at trivia: dozens of people working on their tans!

 

I met General Manager Massimo Arzani on our Montreal-Miami cruise last fall and liked him immediately. He is extremely personable and seems very well liked by staff/crew. Have spoken with him briefly on this cruise, and will get to see him tomorrow morning at the Titanium, Platinum and Gold event--breakfast in the Stars Lounge.

 

Rachel, speaking of greeting the Captain, I still have found thoughts of him doing his mini-"laps" (on Deck 7 I think it was) on Montreal-Miami with his cane. We enthusiastically greeted him one morning, and loved his sweetly formal response, "Good morning, Sir. Good morning, Madam."

 

In a matter of minutes Jean Ann Ryan's newest cast finally hits the stage for the first time. Report to follow soon!

 

Rich

[rarin2go]

Thanks so much for your reports - I doubt we shall ever see Alaska as I don't do long-haul fights any more so it's great to 'be' on the cruise with you and your lovely family.

 

Regent seems to be getting it right generally - friends of ours have just returned from their first Regent cruise (on our recommendation) and were so pleased they're now booking their next! (We were not surprised but just a little relieved ;) )

[TedC]

We went to Antarctica BEFORE we went with family to Alaska - they all loved Alaska but it was anticlamactic for us.

 

SO enjoy Alaska FIRST then go to Antarctica.

[taxare]

We will be going on the May 28 voyage. I am disappointed that Terry Breen won't be on based on her previous reviews. She has been specifically listed as the lecturer on the RSSC website for our cruise. Is Silvio still a manager in Veranda/Setti Mari? He was on his first trip with us on the Navigator in December and had a six month contract. Thanks for the terrific reports!

[mrlevin]

 

The block party tonight was a good opportunity to buttonhole several new-to-Regent neighbors and ask them to rate their Regent experience so far:

 

 

 

Rich

 

Oh, how I hate to be "buttonholed;" a good reason for me to skip the block party in the future.

 

Marc

[Mr Rumor]

Good morning, rarin2go (I'm rarin2go, too, today, with sun in the forecast for Juneau!). TedC, I'd book Antarctica in a heartbeat but would be concerned about the seas/motion and their effect on DW. We'll be taking our first river cruise in the fall, so no worry about motion there. Taxare, I'll see about Silvio.

 

Ratings have become a subtheme of this blog, so I'll hazard a guess as to Shauna's rating of the Jean Ann Ryan cast's performance of "Dawning of Aquarius" last night: about 50 on a scale of 1 to 10. There were a couple of moments (the Four Seasons' "Walk Like a Man" comes to mind) where I thought she was about to spring out of her front-row seat and stage an impromptu audition for the cast on the dance floor. Luckily she stayed put and contented herself with some waves and bursts of "shoulder dancing."

 

"Aquarius" was a smart choice for first-show-for-new-cast vehicle, as it is fast-paced and song-packed (18 tunes in 42 minutes!) and ends with a four-song Beatles blitz. We thought the new cast members acquitted themselves well, with JAR veterans Matt and Aaron, no doubt, serving as a steadying influence.

 

Speaking of Aaron Adkins, featured lead specialty artist, we had been looking forward to him and regular partner Prudence Caldwell performing on this cruise (we met Pru on our 2012 Mariner TA when she was helping another new JAR cast work out the kinds in its show). But, alas, Pru had a spill from the silks during a performance of "Cirque Navigator" aboard the Mariner about a month ago and broke a bone in one hand. Thankfully she is fine and hoping to return to Regent soon. Julia Langenberg is a very able replacement, and we're looking forward to seeing more of her when she and Aaron star in "Cirque" in a couple of days.

 

Rich

Edited May 24, 2014 by Mr Rumor

[TedC]

We rounded the Horn with mild seas around S. America on HAL. And later calm seas to and from Antarctica from Ushuaia on Regent. As usual we secure a cabin amidships and low - where least motion is on most if not all ships. But there are NO guarantees!

 

 

WE sailed around Lake Ontario in small to medium sailing craft for many years and sometimes had some rough water but checked the weather and conditions before we set sail.

Edited May 24, 2014 by TedC

[Mr Rumor]

Taxare, you asked whether or not headwaiter Silvio will still be on the Navigator when you board in a few days. The answer is no--he just went on holiday. And, Karen/1teach53, Compass Rose server Gabriela will still be on vacation when you board on August 20. She won't return to the Navigator until September 17.

 

While I'm on the subject of comings and goings, fans of Cruise Director Lorraine might be interested to know she leaves the ship when we do next Thursday, and will return to the Mariner August 8, staying through January 6, 1215. After that she is tentatively booked on the Navigator again, 3/18/15-7/29/15.

 

We had a dizzying array of excursion possibilities in Juneau today--almost two dozen by my count. Exactly 445 of the 490 passengers booked at least one. The two most popular excursions, by far: "Mendenhall Glacier & Whale Quest," with 104; and "Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest," with 66. One of our neighbors attended another Mendenhall Glacier tour ("Mendenhall Glacier & Gardens) and raved about the glacier portion of the excursion. We visited the glacier in a steady rain last year, so can only imagine how magnificent the glacier must have looked with our wonderful party sunny weather today.

 

We were on one of the many intimately sized excursions, "Historic Gold Mining and Panning Adventure." This is the kind of excursion that rises and falls based on the quality of the tour guide, and, lucky for us, we had a good one in "Panner" Kelly, who really is a serious panner. Had no idea, until Panner told us, that the best panners in the area can make as much as $30,000 in a really good month.

 

Ginny, Shauna and me? We were content with our $12 haul for the hour we spent with our pans in Last Chance Basin. Each tiny flake we harvested is worth about 40 cents, according to Panner.

 

We celebrated by having another excellent dinner in Compass Rose. Gabby and Banhar in Station One continue to impress--they zipped us through our four courses in 90 minutes once again. Karen, I thought of you when I dug into one of my favorite desserts so far: Banana and Macadamia Nut Pudding (actually more like a moist bread) with Chocolate and Vanilla Sauce and Rum Raisin Ice Cream. The chocolate sauce was dark and deeply delish.

 

Wrangell, a brand new port for us, in the morning!

 

Rich

[1teach53]

Taxare, you asked whether or not headwaiter Silvio will still be on the Navigator when you board in a few days. The answer is no--he just went on holiday. And, Karen/1teach53, Compass Rose server Gabriela will still be on vacation when you board on August 20. She won't return to the Navigator until September 17.

 

While I'm on the subject of comings and goings, fans of Cruise Director Lorraine might be interested to know she leaves the ship when we do next Thursday, and will return to the Mariner August 8, staying through January 6, 1215. After that she is tentatively booked on the Navigator again, 3/18/15-7/29/15.

 

We had a dizzying array of excursion possibilities in Juneau today--almost two dozen by my count. Exactly 445 of the 490 passengers booked at least ne. The two most popular excursions, by far: "Mendenhall Glacier & Whale Quest," with 104; and "Whale Watching and Wildlife Quest," with 66. One of our neighbors attended another Mendenhall Glacier tour ("Mendenhall Glacier & Gardens) and raved about the glacier portion of the excursion. We visited the glacier in a steady rain last year, so can only imagine how magnificent the glacier must have looked with our wonderful party sunny weather today.

 

We were on one of the many intimately sized excursions, "Historic Gold Mining and Panning Adventure." This is the kind of excursion that rises and falls based on the quality of the tour guide, and, lucky for us, we had a good one in "Panner" Kelly, who really is a serious panner. Had no idea, until Panner told us, that the best panners in the area can make as much as $30,000 in a really good month.

 

Ginny, Shauna and me? We were content with our $12 haul for the hour we spent with our pans in Last Chance Basin. Each tiny flake we harvested is worth about 40 cents, according to Panner.

 

We celebrated by having another excellent dinner in Compass Rose. Gabby and Banhar in Station One continue to impress--they zipped us through our four courses in 90 minutes once again. Karen, I thought of you when I dug into one of my favorite desserts so far: Banana and Macadamia Nut Pudding (actually more like a moist bread) with Chocolate and Vanilla Sauce and Rum Raisin Ice Cream. The chocolate sauce was dark and deeply delish.

 

Wrangell, a brand new port for us, in the morning!

 

Rich

 

Thanks Rich for the update!! I thought Gabby would be on vaca when we were on the Aug 20 cruise. She deserves every second of time off, such a hard worker!! We will miss her!

Loved hearing about gold panning! I love to do it, John thinks I'm crazy!:p

Ohhhhh, love hearing about the desserts......"food porn", my down fall!!!

Will be interested to hear about Wrangle, we have never been there. Continue to have a great time!!! We look so forward to your reports, thanks!!

Karen