Did that cruise really happen? Or was it a dream?

[sail7seas]

Mary,

This is one of the best Alaska reviews with photos, ever. I am so enjoying it.

Those who have never been able to get close to the Glaciers in Tracy Arm cannot imagine how magnificent.

I feel the same as you that our day in Tracy Arm was one of our most special ever on a cruise ship.

It's a day I'll never forget.

 

It is so good of you to share with us all about your cruise. I don't want the review to end. :)

You have the most beautiful Family!!!!

Edited September 12, 2014 by sail7seas

[Avril]

I'm loving your review and can't wait for more (and more pics)!! :D Your daughters are absolutely adorable. I want to do this exact itinerary, on the same ship now, sounds awesome!! :D I'd also love to go and visit Hawaii sometime, you're so lucky to get to live there.

Edited September 12, 2014 by Avril

[robertmartha]

Double clicked on your post and I have been checking in ever since for updates!

What a great sailing you had with your girls....brings back so many memories of sailing to Alaska with my girls (on HAL) when they were their age .. now second year of college and High School senior! Sounds like you had an amazing time...enjoy them and cruise often with them if you can...the memories of cruise vacations last a lifetime for them.

 

Bob

[AlohaPride]

Here are a few more pictures from Tracy Arm. I just can't get over how amazing it was.

 

Faye and Me

 

 

 

 

My hubby playing in the Fog. It was so interesting. I kept thinking I needed eye drops or something. LOL

 

[AlohaPride]

Day 7: Juneau

 

I started the day with a 3 mile walk around the promenade. It’s 3.5 laps per mile. I was able to watch the ship docking at the same time. It was a beautiful morning and I was very excited to see Juneau.

 

We had two options in Juneau. The first was to rent a car and drive to Mendenhall Glacier and go hiking. The second option was to take the Mt. Roberts Tram and go hiking. Because our girls are so infatuated with Club HAL we decided not to rent the car and stayed close to port. We bought our tram tickets ($80 for our family of 5 because our 5 and 3 year olds were free) and hopped on. It was a fun ride. Each of the tram drivers tell their story and which tribe they are in.

 

The view from the top

 

Once we got to the top we were just in time to watch the Alaska String Band (<--Click here!)perform. It was only a 25 minute show, but it was wonderful. This is a family band and their show tells the story of Juneau along with some of their own experiences intermixed with music and photography. Their movie is going to be on PBS! I can’t wait to watch it.

 

After the show we made our way to see Lady Baltimore. She’s an adult Bald Eagle who was shot by a poacher. She is blind in her left eye and her left wing is damaged. She cannot fly well and has no depth perception because of her blind eye. She is in a cage with a few perches and water. They feed her fish and other birds during the year. She is absolutely beautiful, and she seemed to like our kids. She came right to the front of her cage to stand next to our girls. At the learning center they also have a full size Bald Eagle Nest. All of our girls could fit easily in the nest. There were also mystery touch boxes and other fun activities for kids. We then started our hiking. We spent a good hour just walking along the different paths on Mt. Roberts. It was a little scary in parts to have our kids there because we were so very high up. The girls were disappointed to not see a bear.

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped in the gift shop for some yummy Apple Cider. It was $1.50 for a cup and very very good. We decided to take the ride down and go get some lunch on the ship. That first drop really gets your stomach! Also, I had to pop my ears a few times because of how fast we were going. It was fun and about as close to zip lining as I’ll get on this trip.

 

We had lunch at the Dive In, again, simply because my girls love nachos! After lunch the girls decided they wanted to go to Club HAL and my husband and I went back into Juneau to do some shopping. Almost every store is from out of town. There are blue signs in the shops that are owned and operated by Alaskan families. Some of the shops had those sings, but I would bet they weren’t really from Alaska. . . We bought a few shirts and some fudge from a candy store and headed back to the ship. My husband went for a run and I picked up our girls from Club HAL and took them to the pool.

 

We were originally booked in the Canaletto for dinner, but we found out the Lido was having their Alaska Gold Rush Dinner. The crew were dressed in flannel shirts with suspenders and hats. The buffets all had different decorations. The food was pretty good. My carnivore husband had a little bit of each of the meats – ribs, chicken, sausages and onions, and meatloaf. Our girls had two servings each of the macaroni and cheese along with a baked potato each. Dessert was the BIGGEST apple pie I had ever seen! It had raisins, so I wasn’t tempted to have any.

 

After dinner the girls went back to Club HAL. They were having a Mario Cart Race and movie night. My husband and I went back into Juneau for one last walk around and had a drink at the Red Dog Saloon. There is a huge sign that reads, “If we don’t live up to your standards, drop your standards.” Boy did this apply. We had the WORST margaritas of our lives. When we left our stomachs felt like they were on fire.

 

 

We made our way back on board before the 9:30 all-a-board and found some comfy seats in the Crow’s Nest. We happened to get there in time to watch a presentation on how to make Spanish Coffee. They made two and gave them away. My husband won the second coffee. It had an orange flavor with a slight licorice flavor. After a relaxing time we went and picked up our girls from movie night. Our two youngest daughters were fast asleep on the couch! Now, our girls don’t just fall asleep anywhere. They don’t even sleep in their car seats! This was amazing. They have been going going going and it finally caught up with them. We carried them down to our cabin and turned in for the night.

[AlohaPride]

Day 8: Icy Straight Point, Hoonah.

 

After a good night’s sleep the girls informed us they did not want to take a tender ashore. We went to the Lido for breakfast. I had my usual egg white omelet with spinach, tomatoes, bell peppers, black olives, and jalapenos topped with salsa. It is the BEST breakfast I have ever had. I will be making it when we get home. But we won’t be home for a long while yet. I just love 14 day cruises!

 

My husband and I took the tender ashore and then walked about a mile into the small city of Hoonah. If we thought Ketchikan and Juneau were small, this place is minuscule! It is your legitimate fishing town. It really felt like the small shops in town were just thrown together for the odd tourist. The people there were nice. We saw a lot of wild Bald Eagles, Ravens, and Seagulls. I had no idea Ravens sounded like they do. The males and the females really sound like they are talking to each other. In the town there is a Bald Eagle nest that had a few hatchlings. They are flying, but not ready to leave for good yet. It was amazing to see. It was also very cold and rainy in Hoonah. We decided to walk back to the tenders after getting a couple of coffees.

 

Once we were back at the tenders we decided to split up. My husband met Henk, the Hotel Manager, to go for a run in Hoonah. I decided to do a little shopping. The cannery area is filled with little shops. Some of them are obviously run by the cruise line. Others are run by locals. I shopped in those stores. I bought my dad a birthday card and mailed it and I found my mom a bead for her Pandora bracelet.

 

 

 

 

All aboard was at 3:30. I was on the ship having lunch by 2 and saw my husband and Henk on the last part of their run. It was fun to watch. I picked up our girls and took them to tea. Our oldest had been asking to go to Tea for a few days. It was very nice. Our two youngest loaded their plates with all things sweet.

 

After tea we returned to the room for a nap. Our youngest two still nap daily at home, and had not been napping on this trip. After falling asleep in Club HAL last night, I decided that today called for a nap. There really isn’t anything a parent can do on the ship while their kids are napping, so I sent my husband away and took a nap with our girls. He came back to the room 2 hours later and woke us up. He took the girls for dinner and I got ready for cocktail hour with our friends.

 

Unfortunately, only about 40 minutes after dropping our girls off at Club HAL, our Hannah was sick. We were out at sea and the ship really was moving. I wish she had told us she wasn’t feeling well, because I have Dramamine for the kids. We took her back to our room and gave her some medicine and some Ginger Ale and crackers. We then called the front desk to have a family movie sent to our room. It was only 8 by this time, so my husband sent me to the Lido to grab us some dinner. I was shocked to see that it was already closed, not to reopen until 10:30!

 

After returning to our room, I called room service for some dinners. NY Strip Steak and the Roasted Chicken. It was very good and delivered really quickly. Unfortunately, the DVD did not work. It kept skipping and pausing. It didn’t really matter, because our oldest had already fallen asleep by the time we started having problems with it.

 

It was a fun and relaxing day. Tomorrow we will be at sea on our way north to Anchorage where we will go the Alaska State Fair. We plan to take our oldest to have a medical clearance as soon as we wake up. Then we want to take the Kitchen Tour and attend the Alaska Gold Rush Dreams presentation. We’ll see what we actually do. Tomorrow is also our second formal night of the trip. I would consider the spa treatment called Ionithermie Algae Detox, but it’s $159 and really all it does is dehydrate your skin. ;)

[AlohaPride]

Day 9: At Sea

 

Our Hannah was still not feeling well, although she hadn’t been sick again she was still out of it. The Dramamine made her feel worse, and she wouldn’t eat. My husband and I love sea days and don’t mind some motion. We actually had our best sea day during a storm off the Carolinas in 2006.

 

 

We didn’t get to attend the kitchen tour or the Gold Rush presentation. Instead we all slept in very late and relaxed. It wasn’t until my husband took girls 2 and 3 to Club HAL that Hannah showed any interest in feeling better. She was just soaking up all the attention she could get. As soon as her sisters were gone she asked to go get her medical clearance to rejoin the Club HAL activities. I took her to the infirmary and the desk nurse quickly wrote up a note saying that Hannah was clear to rejoin activities.

 

We picked up her sisters and had some lunch. After their lunch Hannah returned to Club HAL and I took Jackie and Faye swimming. Keaka went to the gym. When we picked up Hannah from Club HAL we found them having a “snowball fight” with toilet paper. Alicia had taken 3 full rolls of toilet paper, unrolled them, and let the kids make as big of a mess as they wanted. When we joked that we were glad the two youngest had missed the mess because they would do it at home for sure. Alicia laughed and said, "Not my problem!" ROFL

 

Faye had a tea party with the chess pieces.

 

This was to be Alicia’s last night with the Amsterdam, and we were all disappointed. She is an AMAZING Club HAL leader and person. You can tell she really loves her job and loves working with kids. She has a lot of energy and patience and our girls just loved her. She’s a trainer for HAL, so she only spends a few weeks at a time on each ship training the Club HAL staff. I really wanted her to stay on for the full 14 days. She really is an asset to Holland America Line.

 

This was a formal night and we wanted to see the show. Show times are 6:30, 8:00, and 10:00 and they only last 30-45 minutes. The entertainer was Bernie Fields. He is the “Harmonica Virtuoso,” and he was very good. He went from one song to another in all different types of genres. The girls got a little fidgety, and it was Alicia’s last night, so we allowed them to go to Club HAL until our 8pm dinner. We wanted to spend at least formal nights together as a family.

 

As I’m writing this I have just realized that we have not taken any pictures of our family all dressed up! We are usually so excited to get dressed up and go “out” and have fun that we have not brought our camera anywhere! Note to self: bring your camera to formal night #3.

 

For dinner, Hannah decided to sit with the other table and not with us. I made the mistake of giving her some Dramamine before dinner, and she did not react well. She got very tired half way through the meal. We all had Surf and Sea for dinner. It was Filet Minion and Prawns. It was very good, but I was worried about Hannah. Our two youngest had the stuffed shells and they devoured them. After dinner, we went back to our cabin to rest because we had a big day ahead of us.

Edited September 13, 2014 by AlohaPride

[Krazy Kruizers]

Great review with wonderful pictures.

 

We love Icy Straight not run over by tourists.

 

Sorry that Hannah wasn't feeling well.

 

The eagles picture is my favorite.

[AlohaPride]

Day 10: Anchorage

 

I. Love. Anchorage. It is a beautiful city and not nearly as congested as Honolulu. From the Lido you could see two mountain ranges. One was covered in snow, and the other wasn’t. They seemed to be the same height, so we wondered how it could be.

 

 

We were scheduled to dock at 8:00 am, but due to tide and current conditions were unable to dock until almost 11. Over the intercom Captain Mercer said that a metal object on the dock made it so we could not pull in on our port side. He said with the other ships docked the way they were and the tide as strong as it was he was not going to risk trying to pull in on the starboard side. At about 9:30-10:00 two tug boats hooked us up and pulled us into the dock. The lines to get on the shuttles to Downtown Anchorage were looooooong, but we didn’t have to wait more than 20 minutes. Once off the shuttle we made our way to Avis to pick up our car. Again, another long line but not a bad wait. About 10 minutes into our drive to Palmer and the Fair Avis called to let us know that they had forgotten to give us back our credit card. At this point I was wondering if we were pushing our luck to go to the Fair. LOL

 

We did finally make it to the fair. It was a lot of fun. There was a Reptile exhibit with all sorts of spiders, snakes, lizards, bugs, etc. They had cottonmouths, diamondbacks, boa constrictors, anacondas, alligator snapping turtles, water monitors, you name it. The girls thought it was wonderful. The Farm exhibit had all the 4-H entries. There were chickens, roosters, turkeys, ducks, rabbits, cows, pigs, goats, and other animals. A chicken laid an egg right in front of Hannah. She thought it was the coolest thing EVER! Because of Hannah’s motion sickness we didn’t risk any rides, but we walked all over the fair, ate some junk food, had reindeer hot dogs, and a huge bag of cotton candy before heading back into Anchorage. We stopped at a pharmacy to try to find Hannah some sea bands, but they didn’t have any. We returned our car at about 7:30 and walked back to the shuttle area. We were back on board by 8:15 and in the lido pool soaking in the hot tub by 8:30. We were sad to miss dinner, but had something from the Lido instead. After the pool closed I took the girls back to our cabin for bed.

 

 

 

 

 

Note: I gave Hannah a half tablet of bonine and it worked with her a LOT better than the other medication. She was 100% the rest of the trip.

 

At some point my husband’s slippers (people on the mainland call them flip-flops) disappeared. We have had 2 things go missing so far – his slippers and JJ’s new white tiger hat. Because of his missing slippers, Keaka has had to wear his running shoes everywhere. So he decided to take them to the self-service laundry to clean them while I read the girls some stories and put them to bed. I was sad to miss the Indonesian Show at 11, but we are unwilling to leave our girls alone – sleeping or not – in the cabin.

[AlohaPride]

Thank you all so much for your kind words. It means a lot to me that you are enjoying our adventure.

 

Ruth, we must must must do this itinerary together again. Actually, I'd do any itinerary with you!!!

[RJ2002]

What a great review. So enjoying your descriptions and pictures.

 

Sorry you missed out on dinner at the Lido that night. It really is ridiculous they stop serving so early.

[Cruzin Terri]

Mary,

What a great review. The girls look like they had a wonderful time.

Terri

[rajkr74]

Great review! Glad you had a great cruise on the Amsterdam as we did in June. Your daughters are adorable and it appeared they loved the "adventure" as much as you did.:)

[DeeBee76]

Really? You leave in 98 days? Must not be Alaska, right?

 

oh no sam def not alaska in winter we are doing sydney to new zealand :)

[jbhcw]

Thank you so much for your review and wonderful pictures! The one of the girls in the eagle's nest was amazing!! This trip is on my bucket list...just trying to talk DH into doing it,..he hates cold weather:) but I told him we have to go to Alaska at least once!! Again thanks!

[Mr. Boston]

I'm loving your photo journal. Your photographs are great and are making me consider an Alaska cruise. Thank-you for taking the time to share your adventures!

[hpf]

What a great report and with lovely pictures as well. Now I'm looking forward to the rest of your journey.

 

Your girls look like they are having such fun, it's so nice to see families travelling together and they do remember those great family trips. We always took our two camping with us and even took along a niece to Disney World with us and although the three of them were only 7 and 8 they all remember that trip.

 

Now, if my DH isn't cruising with me my DD and sometimes her adult daughter go with me and we have a blast. So that is something to look forward to much later in your life.

Many, many more years of great cruising for you and your family.

 

Helen

Edited September 13, 2014 by hpf
Spelling.

[Copper10-8]

Awesome job on the review and pics Mary! :)

[Love the beach]

Loved the review and pictures! You have a beautiful family!

[wandb]

I am so enjoying your wonderful review, and the amazing pictures. You are bringing back so many memories of our 2005 Ryndam cruise/tour to Alaska. We loved every minute of it, and want to go back.

 

Your girls are precious. Would love to cruise with you one day!

 

So interesting about the fog. We have a place in the Great Smokey Mountains, and we love watching the fog as it moves up and down in the valleys below, and as it moves toward us and then envelops us as we sit on the deck. They are called the Smokeys because of the fog/clouds, of course, not smoke!:)

[RuthC]

This is neat. Not only am I sharing the parts of the cruise I didn't take with you, I am reliving parts of my own cruise, too. And it's only half over. :D

[AlohaPride]

Day 11 Homer and The Spit

 

At 9:00 am JJ and Faye went to the Club HAL cooking class in the Culinary Arts center. They learned how to make playdoh. When I picked them up at 9:45 they were both covered in flour and said they had a fantastic time! They were even given a recipe card with different types of playdoh.

 

We arrived in Homer at 10:00 am and had to be back on board by 5:30. JJ was the only girl who did not want to join us. She wanted to go back to Club HAL and play with the new team, April and Andrew “Andy.”

 

Hannah had birthday money to spend and Faye wanted some mommy and daddy time. We took the shuttle to the spit and walked around for a few hours. We saw "Deadliest Catch's" Time Bandit on our way. The shuttle dropped us off next to the Salty Dawg Saloon. We walked in, walked through, and walked out. LOL I’d like to go back and see the other parts of Homer and not just The Spit next time. I had some Halibut and Chips and Keaka had some clam chowder in a bread bowl. His dish was amazing, and it was $12 less than my 6 oz. of fish. It was all very good, though, and we had an amazing view of the beach. The restaurant was the first on the left side of the street from where the shuttle drops passengers off. I'm sorry, I've forgotten the name. But it was good food and I'd recommend it.

 

 

 

The view from our table.

 

 

While we were shopping Keaka ran into someone wearing a jacket with his favorite band’s logo on it. He stopped to tell the man how awesome the band was. The man had never heard of Reel Big Fish, and said he liked to fish. He had found it at a garage sale. Keaka then told him about the band. At that point the man said, "You really love this band. I'm going to give you my jacket." He took it off and tried to give it to Keaka. Keaka said he couldn’t just take it and gave the man his Aloha Shirt. It was a fun experience to have.

 

 

We made our way back to the ship and picked Jackie up from Club HAL. It was nap time and we had a few new books to read. Keaka decided to go and run in Homer. He ran all the way around and logged about 11 or 12 miles in about an hour and 15 minutes. When the girls woke up we got ready for dinner and took them to the Lido to eat. It was SPY night in Club HAL, but first we wanted to see “The Unexpected Boys” show. They are a group who covers Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. They were really good and super funny. The 6:30 show was standing room only, which didn’t bother JJ or Faye because they just danced the entire time.

 

After the show we dropped the girls off for SPY Night and met our friends in the Crow’s Nest for cocktails. We had an amazing dinner of prime rib and desserts before one of the Club HAL staff notified us that our youngest, Faye, had fallen off a chair and hit her head. She was fine, but they just wanted to let us know. We picked the girls up and went to the Crow’s Nest to listen to some music, and observe Faye to make sure she didn’t have a concussion. There were a few people dancing to country night who were obviously surprised to see three young kids dancing, too. But it was a lot of fun, and I’m glad we went. It also put my mind at ease.

[AlohaPride]

Day 12 Kodiak

I did not have high expectations for this port of call. We were not going to be docked in Kodiak for long and there weren’t any shore excursions I was very interested in. The girls wanted to go to Club HAL, so after a late breakfast we dropped the girls off and decided just to walk around and “see what we can see.”

 

After a 20 minute wait we boarded a shuttle that would drop us off at the Visitor’s Center. The center is right next to a dock where a boat was unloading its catch. We were pleasantly surprised to see two Sea Lions playing right behind the ship waiting for scraps to fall into the water. They were very cute and we were lucky to see them.

 

 

This sea lion would bounce up and down at the back of the boat begging for scraps.

 

 

Then we visited the Kodiak National Wildlife Visitors Center. Upstairs we found the Blue Whale skeleton that the community found, cleaned, and reassembled. Downstairs there was an exhibit about the Kodiak Bear, its habitat, and its food. There were park rangers on hand to speak about the national parks, roads, wildlife, and ecosystems. I would recommend everyone visit this little spot. It’s free and very informational. One of the park rangers was very knowledgeable about the Alaska roads. She spoke about which roads were open and when, how dangerous other roads were, and the best way to take a land based Alaska vacation.

 

 

 

Our next stop was the Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church. There was a docent there telling the story of the church, the first American saint, and the history of the Icons. It was very interesting to hear her interpretation of stories I’ve heard as a Catholic. There was one specific story about a martyr killed by Catholic Jesuits. I'm still researching that story. Lastly, we happened upon the Monks Rock Russian Coffee Shop. My husband had his first taste of baklava and loved it. Upstairs there was a second hand shop that also sold some handmade local items. We had a wonderful time in Kodiak.

 

 

 

After we boarded we picked the girls up, changed for the pool, and hit up the Lido. This was pretty much our afternoon routine if the girls didn’t need naps (and sometimes even when they needed naps). We usually ended up having something from the Dive In while the girls made nachos. Those burgers were amazing! My husband and I love the Dive In Sauce so much that I asked for the recipe. Man, does it have a LOT of ingredients and steps involved in making it! No way will I ever make it. Looks like we'll just have to take another DAM cruise.

 

It was a formal night, but the girls wanted to spend an hour in Club HAL, so we left the pool at 6 to go get ready for the night. It was so hard to get the girls to spend any time with us, so we only demanded they eat with us on Formal Nights. We all had either the shrimp cocktail or escargot. Everyone had crab legs except me because of a new food allergy to shellfish (poor me!). I had the rack of lamb. It was very good, but I really wanted the crab. Or 5 year old polished off almost 2 full plates! She ate all of hers and almost all of her father’s. HA! That’s what he gets for rubbing it in.

 

After dinner we were all pretty exhausted so we headed back to our room. It was a wonderful day at The Spit and I am looking forward to another trip there in the future.

Edited September 13, 2014 by AlohaPride

[AlohaPride]

Day 13 Scenic Cruising of Hubbard Glacier

 

I was still so very amazed by Tracy Arm and the South Sawyer Glacier. I didn’t think my mind could fathom any more awesomeness.

 

We tried to sleep in because we were so exhausted by three port days in a row, but there was a 9:30 fire drill that worked as our alarm clock. As usual, we went to the Lido for breakfast and then the girls spent about an hour at Club HAL. My husband and I used that time to go get a coffee and take a walk around the ship. It was so peaceful and relaxing. I absolutely love my husband and was so spoiled being able to spend so many days with him. I don’t know how I’m going to survive normal life after such an amazing cruise.

 

We picked the girls up and took them to the tennis court to play some ball. It was good fun. We then had lunch at the Salmon Bake. It was very very good! Our 5 year old loved the salmon. She really is our seafood fan. I had the salmon, a baked potato, and the steamed veggies. It was all very satisfying.

 

As 1 pm rolled around we took the girls to Club HAL for their glacier activities and I sat my happy self down on a recliner on the Promenade Deck.

I learned my lesson from the last time I viewed a glacier. This time I wore 2 pairs of pants, a long sleeved shirt, a sweater, a hoodie, and the HAL Jacket I bought at the HAL Gear sale. I also had a headband that covered my ears and gloves. This Hawaii girl still needed 3 blankets to be warm enough to stay outside for the length of the scenic viewing. Boy was it worth it!! Hubbard Glacier is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G in a way completely different from Tracy Arm and South Sawyer Glacier. I am not a good enough writer to properly convey how life changing this experience was. My time in both Tracy Arm and Hubbard Glacier was like a prayer. All of my thoughts were a conversation with a God so amazing that He could create THIS. Wow.

 

Around 1:30 we picked up our Pilot, and started to make our way into Yakutat Bay. It was pretty, but the weather wasn’t cooperating very well. It was extremely cold on deck and I felt sorry for the crew members in their regular uniforms sent out into the wind to bring us all some Dutch Pea Soup and later Hot Cocoa. They really should be given heavier coats to wear and gloves at least. The soup and cocoa were AHmazing. I had to control myself and not take seconds, thirds, and fourths.

 

 

Later we entered Disenchantment Bay. It was beautiful. The rain picked up a bit, but it made the view more ethereal. There was an announcement that seals were on an iceberg, but I didn’t see them. Then we started to hear the “White Thunder” and the ice was cracking all around our ship as we made our way around a large ice field. It occurred to me the amount of trust we place in strangers.

 

 

Hubbard Glacier makes South Sawyer Glacier look like a toy. It is so huge that I couldn’t get all of the glacier in one frame even from the 1/3 mile distance we had. Hubbard Glacier gave us a fantastic show as well. It seemed that everywhere I looked I saw calving. The thunder was constantly rolling and the ice was falling. It really was something beautiful to see.

 

 

 

 

At 3 Club HAL took the girls to the bow of the ship to see the glacier and at 3:30 they went for hot cocoa and ice cream. Turns out that 3:00-3:30 was ALWAYS ice cream time. I had no idea, because I had been picking the girls up at 4 and taking them for ice cream as well. It wasn’t until 11 days into this 2 weeks that I learned this important fact! Those girls were taking FULL advantage of it, too!! Little buggers.

 

After a snack we headed back out on the Promenade to watch the glacier a bit longer. I’m really glad we were in an inside cabin, because we would have missed so much being stuck on only one side of the ship.

 

At 5:30 we went back to our cabin to get ready for dinner because the Unexpected Boys were performing again at 6:30. This time they did a story-line involving Broadway and it was even better than the Frankie Valley and the Temptations show!! They covered many of the most popular show along with a LOT of songs from lesser known shows. Before their last number they dropped character to let the audience know that the original Unexpected Boys were all veteran Broadway performers who had met on the cast of Les Misérables. Their last number was “One Day More” from the show at the end of the first act. It was very very well done. I would really like to see this group again.

 

 

Our friends were also at the show, so while Keaka took the girls to Club HAL for their fun night, I headed up to our usual spot in the Crow’s Nest for cocktails. This group really has become like family to us. We are so blessed to know them.

 

Dinner was Sweet Tomato and Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella and the NY Strip. There wasn’t anything on the menu that I was interested in and I was still SO FULL from the Dutch Pea Soup. This was another fantastic day.

[Alberta Quilter]

That's quite funny about the ice cream! I can't say I blame your kids, who wouldn't do the same thing?!:D

 

Thanks very much for doing the review. It's really neat to revisit our May cruise through the eyes of someone who has never been to Alaska.

 

I'm so happy that you and your family had such a great time!

Edited September 13, 2014 by Alberta Quilter