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| Tue-Juneau | Wed-Ketchikan | Thu-Inside Passage | Fri-Vancouver | Ship Tour | Panoramas | Back |
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My Portrait
Photography
My Nature Photography
6:00 AM thru 1:00 PM
Rolled out of bed extra early today as we were to arrive at College Fjord at 6:00 AM. This was the perfect scene with which to begin the cruise. When I first got to the bow I saw my first floating glacier ice. The water was smooth as glass as we passed the first few glaciers which made for some incredible reflections.
We approached Harvard Glacier and it appeared that we were right on top of it when the ship slowed to a halt. The captain then turned the starboard side towards the glacier and "parked". The naturalist explained that we were actually 1/4 mile away from the glacier. That just didn't seem real, the glacier must be so huge to look as big as it did from that distance. Got to see my first calving here (huge chunks of glacier breaking off). You had to pay attention to see it happen.
The glacier was surprisingly noisy. It was constantly creaking, snapping and cracking. With all that noise you would think it was going to collapse at any second. The loudest noises, or thunder as it called, occurred when the glacier actually calved. I was lucky enough to catch it on video.
After a while the captain turned the ship around so the port side would be facing the glacier. At this time I headed down to the room to get the others for breakfast. We grabbed a quick meal in the Lido. The omelet station was great, although it did take a bit of time as they are cooked to order. It was crowded and hard to find a table for 5. There was plenty of seating for 2 or 4. The staff saw my children in line and were there to take their trays and help us to a table which we found with their help in a few minutes (seems so long when you're carrying your food).
We all then went out to watch the scenery. On the ice the naturalist point out some harbor seals. You would need a really good lens to get close-up.
The first of many art auctions was scheduled for today. Seemed to be the usual fair including oils, water colors, lithographs and animation art.
Galley tour (kitchen to you land lubbers) for the most part was just a walk thru as there was no guide. We did receive a tour information sheet:
You could use the included map to identify the various areas within the galley. Everything looked very clean and shiny as expected.
As we got further into the galley we there were a few exhibits for us to see. We did also get to see a small portion of the staff working on various tasks throughout the tour.
At the end of the tour we got to sample a few items and ask questions. As part of the tour we did get HAL's recipe for Crab Cakes and a sample (yummy).
From here it was to the Pinnacle Grill for some information on how it differs from the main dining room.
Apparently when a ship is within costal waters, a local pilot who is an expert in the area needs to be on board to guide the ship through the local waters. The pilot of course needs to get off the ship while it is still moving. A chase boat comes along side and the pilot climbs onto this boat. It then meets a floatplane to return the pilot to Anchorage.
A wine tasting was held in the card room today. The cost was $7.50.
As I was exploring the ship I stumbled upon this amazing dessert display.
As we headed on our way we saw some other wildlife including Sea Lions, Puffin, leaping Salmon and our first whale. My camera decided that it did not want to take pictures when the whale appeared so you'll have to take my word for it. Later I removed and reinserted the batteries and it came back to life. I was really afraid it was dead on the first day.
Had a leisurely lunch in the Lido, forgetting all about the wonderful dessert display I had found earlier. Once again the buffet proved to be above standard. Everyone was able to find plenty of choices.
We spent the rest of the day exploring the ship and relaxing. What a great feeling watching the world go by without a care in the world.
Eventually we made our way back to the cabin and found some nice surprises. Some tasty chocolates (too tasty, as they got eaten before I got the picture) and two tote bags. These tote bags came in very handy later in the cruise as we took our excursions.
With tonight being formal night, we needed a little extra time to get ready for dinner. There was a pre-dinner reception and formal portraits were taken prior to dinner.
Having previewed the menu we were all eager to try out the selections.
I started with the Pate de Foie Gras, both soups (the were two of my favorites), house salad. For my entrees (yes, plural) I had the Pair of Lobster Tails and Filet Mignon. Both were good, the Filet being better.
Tonight was the Running of the Moose - chocolate mousse that is. The
parade started with a staff member dressed in a moose costume followed by the
staff carrying trays of mousse. It was corny but fun. My kids really
enjoyed it.
Our youngest daughter was getting seasick, so mom took her back to the room to sleep.
We went early to the Vermeer to get a good seat for the show. When we got there the theater was full. How could that be? It turns out that Hal schedules another activity immediately prior to the show. This we would learn was standard procedure. Apparently you find a seat during the other activity and possibly move when it ends. We didn't feel comfortable barging in during the other activity, but it turns out to be how its done.
We tried to get our daughters to attend the show, but they were hooked on Club Hal. They didn't want to miss this evenings activities. This would become a trend, and we did have to force them to see at least one show.
The show was "Monte Carlo" a musical show ranging from Can-Can to Bond. The show was fun, not world class, but a very pleasant evening.
Our youngest daughter was seasick during dinner so we took her to the cabin to rest and go to sleep. We checked on her and went to the show. Being the good girl she is, she knew that the door needed to be locked if she was sleeping, so she turned the lockout knob thinking she was locking the door as she been taught at home. So what we saw was a locked door.
When we returned to our room, we could not open the door. We tired knocking and then banging on the door. Our steward came and asked what was wrong, so he tried calling the room. Mean while inside our daughter slept like a baby. The steward told us there were only three keys on board that could override the lockout. He called the hotel manager and he brought one of the keys. He tried it and it didn't work. He tried and tried and finally decided to go get one of the other master keys. Upon his return the door was still refusing to open with the new key. More banging on the door. A another couple down the hall started calling our cabin every few minutes, but our daughter continued to sleep. My wife was afraid that something had happened and she wasn't in the room, after all how could she sleep through all this racket?
Next they called the locksmith. The entire time the ships officer was apologizing profusely. When the locksmith arrived, they asked him how this could happen, as all the locks had just been checked. While the locksmith tried the key, we discussed with the crew the possibility of climbing around the balcony. That idea was being saved as a last resort as it was very dangerous.
Well if keys won't work, how about a pry bar. They got one from the fire station and it was at least 4 feet long. More banging, prying, wiggling of keys, beating, hammering, ringing of the phone - still our daughter slept and the door remained shut.
The neighbor down the hall noticed that there was a one foot gap over top to the balcony divider that would be easy to climb over with no danger or falling overboard. I told the ships officer who was supervising that I was willing to do it. He said the hotel manager or captain would have to ok me going through the adjoining cabin without the occupants being there to grant permission. While they waited for the Hotel Manager to return the door popped open so I never needed to make the climb.
We opened the door and there she was sound asleep, total unaware that we were trying to get in. Note the phone sitting less than three feet from her head. This girl can sleep!
Later on we heard the story about the girl locked in her room. The story had taken on a life of it's own.
The good news is, if you turn the lockout knob, you don't have to worry about anybody just barging in to your cabin. The locks really do work. I believe the crew was very concerned that their master keys did not work, as if this had been a cry for help, they couldn't get in. Then again, they probably would have smashed the door right away, as they were considering it for our case.
Tomorrow we will be at Glacier Bay for even more amazing scenery.
| Our Trip | Pre-Cruise | Fri-Board | Sat-College Fjord | Sun-Glacier Bay | Mon-Sitka | Home |
| Tue-Juneau | Wed-Ketchikan | Thu-Inside Passage | Fri-Vancouver | Ship Tour | Panoramas | Back |
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