Trip Report Oosterdam Alaska Cruise – July 24-31, 2004 Day 3 of 8

[bryanwal]

Day Three – Monday, July 26, 2004 – Juneau

 

Even with the time change (you gain an hour going into Alaska) I woke up at 6:30 and rose ahead of everyone else. I forgot to get up at 5:30 to watch the whale pod that the captain announced yesterday we’d be passing through. After I was ready, I went up through the Lido pool area to deck 11 by the spiral staircase. First, though I swung by the buffet and swiped some cold cuts to tide me over until breakfast. The buffet was already bustling. Then I headed topsides. It was cold up there and I chatted with a lady who suggested that I would be sorry if I had not brought warm clothing, and that I should dress in layers. We did bring such clothing, especially because we’re going to be out on the water today on our wildlife excursion. I went to the Crow’s Nest to read but ended up spending the time chatting with a nice lady from Houston about this and that, including about what we should see in Galveston when we go through there on our Holiday cruise on the Galaxy in December 2005. Her sister arrived at about 7:45 and invited me to join them for breakfast, but I thanked them and declined. I felt I had better go down and awaken the family so we could have breakfast, and pack up the laundry for cleaning today. At the suite, they were all sleeping so I opened the curtains wide. I prepared the laundry and gave it to Darma then we went up to the Lido, had breakfast and ate it by the Lido pool. For the most part, they have the same thing everyday in the Lido for breakfast. At one station the sign says “Fried and Scrambled Eggs” but I heard one woman ask for fried eggs and she was told they couldn’t make any for her. We went back down to the room to prepare for our day. The boys and I went out to the verandah to watch the docking procedure. We heard something that sounded like a gun shot and it turned out to be when they shot the first guy rope for the moorage ropes and watched the ship sidle up to the dock and the dock workers attach the ship. All the rest of the big ropes in the front were attached by strings to the first rope, so there was no more shooting. In fact, although we observed them tying up the ship both in Ketchikan and Victoria, this was the only time they used the pneumatic gun.

 

There was a huge line to disembark the ship and all were leaving by the midship hatch. Finally a crewman guided some of us another way to the aft hatch so we could disembark sooner. We stepped out into the cool Juneau air and there were numerous people holding signs for various shore excursions. We showed one of them our tickets and they pointed us to the bus we should board. We took the bus on a long ride through town to Allen Marine, and boarded the St Nicholas for a 3-hour tour (shades of Gilligan’s Island). Binoculars were provided but we brought our own so we wouldn’t have to share. The whole thing was done in a very professional manor with a naturalist providing narration, and background information and helping us to spot the animals. Snacks and drinks were provided. There were lots of hunchback whales surfacing spouting, showing flukes, etc. We must have seen nine or ten pods. Several times saw the rare bubble-net hunting technique of the whales. The naturalist told us that only about 10% of viewers get to see that. We also saw a bald eagle in a tree feeding its young in its huge nest and saw sea lions on a buoy.

 

At last, the boat returned and we boarded the bus for the Mendenhall Glacier. When we arrived we walked the main trail and toured the Visitors Center but didn’t see the film. It was a good day to see the glacier since it was overcast. Apparently on days like this the blues stand out more. The lake in front of the glacier was full of floating blue and white ice, apparently from calving. At the appointed time we waited in the area where the bus was supposed to pick us up, but it was late due to the excessive crowding. We boarded the bus for an uneventful ride back to the dock. On the way back several folks asked the driver if he could drop us off in town, but no dice. The bus returned us to the dock where Jeffrey boarded the ship and the rest of us took a shuttle ($2) back to Juneau. It was a short ride to the bottom of the Mount Roberts Tramway where we got off and looked for something to eat, since we had no lunch (it’s almost 5). The Zaadam, Diamond Princess and Radiance of the seas towered over the town and were docked very conveniently so that no additional transport was required.

 

The tour was originally scheduled for 1:30 or so but the ship’s schedule changed and we got in around 10, so no lunch. We found a litte restaurant called Pizza Verona. Good service, good food, generous portions. I had chicken Caesar salad, E had greek salad, K had a Britain Burger. We stopped at a store which had post cards @ 6/$1 and then looked around. We were tired and most of the stores had the same thing as every other port of call (Columbian Emeralds, Little Switzerland, Diamonds International, Del Sol T-Shirts, etc) or as Seattle (Northwestern Native American art) so we walked back to the tramway and boarded the shuttle for the ship.

I scanned the menus and the New York Times Summary that are delivered daily each morning and then prepared for dinner, although we had just eaten. It was casual night. I ordered:

Sweet Tomato with Fresh Mozzarella

Calironian Gourmet Greens with garlic herbed courotns, toasted nuts and orange segments

Double Venison Loin with Gooseberry Confit

Vanilla Crème de Pot with strawberry compot

Our table mates were again no shows. Was it something we said?

The ship left port just as we started dinner. I gave Davis (pronounced “Dah-fees”) and Alit a cash tip to continue to encourage their excellent service. On the way out after dinner I succumbed to the charms of the YumYum guy and tried a candied ginger. Yummy! This was to become a habit for the rest of the cruise.

We stopped by the photographer, bought the formal night portraits, and threw away the embarkation photos because my face was half hidden.

E stayed in cabin to read while we went to see Lee Bayless – he was funny but I couldn’t stay awake due to the time change. Also, we stayed after for the Indonesian Crew Show, which was good but I was sleepy since the show started at 11:30. I apologize to them because I dozed off a couple of times during this show as well. These poor guys did a good job but it must have been a sacrifice for them since they work such long hours. Still, they are happy to share their culture and are pleased by the interest of the passengers who come to the show. Apparently, they perform every other week. The other times, it’s the Pilipino crew show.

 

- Bryan Walton

[luv2cruise450]

Bryan...thank you so much for taking the time to post while on your cruise. Sounds like you and your family are having a great time!

Happy sailing!

[bryanwal]

Oh, I'm much too cheap to post during the cruise. Internet time is outrageously expensive. Besides, sometimes I just take notes during the cruise cuz I'm so busy having fun or relaxing. What I'm doing now is cleaning up the prose, filling in more details, etc. then post when I'm ready.

 

I'm glad you're enjoying the postings and I appreciate the positive feedback.

 

I forgot to mention in the posting, that I ran into fellow CC'er Thoth at the evening shows. We were supposed to arrange to meet but then lost contact when they redid the boards. I started chatting with an interesting single traveler then saw him on subsequent evenings. One night as we were talking he put two and two together and realized who I was.

[Jett456]

What was the tour called that you did in Juneau? Was it worth the price? I am planning for next year's Amsterdam cruise. I am enjoying reading your report. Thanks.

[bryanwal]

Thank you for your kind words. The tour was the "Mendenhall Glacier and Whale Watch" and I thought it was worth the price. Both parts of the excursion were very interesting and we couldn't have booked for much less on our own. Plus, with the original port schedule, the combined tour would have taken up our entire time on shore and I wanted the ship to handle the transportation, etc. so that there would be no risk.