We woke up this morning about 2 hours out of Skagway. Pea soup fog! We took a train up the mountain. Caught a few good views. But at times we couldn't see a thing! Eerie and beautiful at the same time. Of course, much better when we could see the mountains. At times we were on sheer cliffs. The railroad was built during the gold rush. Interesting stuff.
We spent about an hour shopping in Skagway. Jan and I toured the former Brothel. Interesting place for a pastor to tour but it was fun in a goofy sort of way.
The fog lifted somewhat so the ride out of Skagway was breath-taking. (The locals keep telling us how great the weather was--last year! :) We just enjoy being cold for a change.)
We have to make a detour back to Juneau. Apparently 11 of our shipmates were stranded on a helicopter/dogsled adventure on a glacier. We aren't even sure if they have made it back down yet.
Before dinner Jan and I treated ourselves to a massage. Actually, we were given a ship credit and used it for that.
All in all, so far--a very nice trip with some not so nice weather. But this is Alaska, after all. One of God's masterpieces.
We will be on the boat now for the next 48 hours.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Alaskan Cruise, Saturday evening, August 16
Yesterday we did a three hour land and sea experience. We had some great whale sightings from the boat! And watched a bald eagle on a small island. Back on the ship we took some extra time to enter a fjord near Sitka. It was a beautiful, sunny evening and the views were absolutely stunning.
We woke up to another cloudy day. Early in the morning we headed into Tracy's Arm--another fjord. Even though it was very cloudy it was a great ride. Lots of icebergs. Beautiful waterfalls. Good stuff.
This afternoon was a land/sea photo safari around Juneau. We headed out on boat first, saw some whales (not great) and some sea lions (awesome). Then to a glacier in the hope of seeing bears (no luck). Very cold. Very rainy all day.
The locals tell us this is the coldest, wettest summer they've experienced in years. Oh well...still an amazing trip.
We woke up to another cloudy day. Early in the morning we headed into Tracy's Arm--another fjord. Even though it was very cloudy it was a great ride. Lots of icebergs. Beautiful waterfalls. Good stuff.
This afternoon was a land/sea photo safari around Juneau. We headed out on boat first, saw some whales (not great) and some sea lions (awesome). Then to a glacier in the hope of seeing bears (no luck). Very cold. Very rainy all day.
The locals tell us this is the coldest, wettest summer they've experienced in years. Oh well...still an amazing trip.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Alaskan Cruise, Friday pm, August 15
A "this is why we cruise Alaska" day. The weather finally broke and the day was filled with mostly sunny skies. We stopped in Sitka and took a 3 hour boat ride, beach walk. We saw some whales!!!! and sea otters and a bald eagle. Jan has some great photos but we can't get them to upload so when we get home we'll put a few up.
The scenery is amazing. We're headed into a fjord soon so I need to get out of here and up to the top deck.
More to come.
The scenery is amazing. We're headed into a fjord soon so I need to get out of here and up to the top deck.
More to come.
Alaskan Cruise, Friday am, August 15
The night ride was much calmer, with a few big rolls from time to time. Woke up to a cloudy morning. As we now head into Sitka the sky seems to be clearing. We can actually see mountains!
A cruise like this is really dependent on weather. Since much of the joy of the cruise is the coastline (and our room is on the right side to see the coast) nice weather is crucial. Nice to finally see some coast rather than grey skies and grey waters.
Stunning scenery!
A cruise like this is really dependent on weather. Since much of the joy of the cruise is the coastline (and our room is on the right side to see the coast) nice weather is crucial. Nice to finally see some coast rather than grey skies and grey waters.
Stunning scenery!
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Alaskan Cruise, Thursday evening, Aug. 14
It's about 6:30 pm our time. We just finished eating and are thinking about settling in for the night.
Turns out last night we were fighting 13 foot waves. The fun lasted until about 2:30 this afternoon. At that point we headed inland to Hubbard Glacier. The weather stayed overcast but the water became quite calm. Though cloudy, the views of the glaciers were magnificent. Nice to see some scenery after grey skies for so long. I guess we've had beautiful mountain ranges out our window the entire time. We just couldn't see them.
We are now headed our first port. The water is a bit choppier compared to Hubbard Glacier but still much better than what we had. Oy!
(We tried to add some pics but apparently our internet connection is not quite up to the task out here at sea.)
Until tomorrow...
Turns out last night we were fighting 13 foot waves. The fun lasted until about 2:30 this afternoon. At that point we headed inland to Hubbard Glacier. The weather stayed overcast but the water became quite calm. Though cloudy, the views of the glaciers were magnificent. Nice to see some scenery after grey skies for so long. I guess we've had beautiful mountain ranges out our window the entire time. We just couldn't see them.
We are now headed our first port. The water is a bit choppier compared to Hubbard Glacier but still much better than what we had. Oy!
(We tried to add some pics but apparently our internet connection is not quite up to the task out here at sea.)
Until tomorrow...
Alaskan Cruise, Thursday am, Aug. 14
I thought I would write up an occasional report on our Alaskan Cruise so that you can live vicariously through us.
Our day began at 2:30 am yesterday. We stayed near the airport due to a 6:20 am flight. We flew about 3 hours to Seattle. Then, after a 1 hour layover, another 3:30 hours to Anchorage. After a 1 hour wait, a 2 1/2 hour scenic bus ride to the ship. A long trip, but it went very smoothly and quickly. The bus ride was pretty amazing.
We are on Regent Seas, a smaller ship that only accommodates 700 passengers. Each room has its own balcony, which is nice. We departed at 6:00 pm Alaska time. It is now 10 am. We have been rockin' and rollin' since the moment we left. While working out this morning (an interesting experience with the ship lunging and bouncing) I asked one of the staff if this was normal. She said that normally she sleeps through the night. Last night the rocking woke her up. So we're having some fun. Thank goodness for Dramamine. (We took the advice of others and started taking it two days before the trip.)
Sitting in the room seems to be the most stable, if stable is even a word in this water. I tried to take in a lecture this morning but the rolling in the theater was way too intense for me. Jan stayed. And she's usually the queasy one on these kinds of waters.
We've been able to eat ok. Just trying to keep our balance (try taking a shower in this stuff!)
So...hopefully we're getting it out of its system.
Doesn't this make you want to cruise? :)
We saw some beautiful stuff early on last night. A big glacier tour awaits us today, weather permitting.
It's quite an adventure!
More to come.
Our day began at 2:30 am yesterday. We stayed near the airport due to a 6:20 am flight. We flew about 3 hours to Seattle. Then, after a 1 hour layover, another 3:30 hours to Anchorage. After a 1 hour wait, a 2 1/2 hour scenic bus ride to the ship. A long trip, but it went very smoothly and quickly. The bus ride was pretty amazing.
We are on Regent Seas, a smaller ship that only accommodates 700 passengers. Each room has its own balcony, which is nice. We departed at 6:00 pm Alaska time. It is now 10 am. We have been rockin' and rollin' since the moment we left. While working out this morning (an interesting experience with the ship lunging and bouncing) I asked one of the staff if this was normal. She said that normally she sleeps through the night. Last night the rocking woke her up. So we're having some fun. Thank goodness for Dramamine. (We took the advice of others and started taking it two days before the trip.)
Sitting in the room seems to be the most stable, if stable is even a word in this water. I tried to take in a lecture this morning but the rolling in the theater was way too intense for me. Jan stayed. And she's usually the queasy one on these kinds of waters.
We've been able to eat ok. Just trying to keep our balance (try taking a shower in this stuff!)
So...hopefully we're getting it out of its system.
Doesn't this make you want to cruise? :)
We saw some beautiful stuff early on last night. A big glacier tour awaits us today, weather permitting.
It's quite an adventure!
More to come.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Airline Nightmare
Before you read this post, make sure you read the one below this--the good news about the great wedding Corey and Alycia celebrated!
Yesterday (Tuesday) Corey and Alycia were to fly from LAX to Tahiti for their honeymoon on Air Tahiti Nui, leaving at around 4:30 pm. They boarded the plane at around 4:10 and then sat at the gate for almost 6 hours! An airline passenger's worst nightmare. The legroom was the smallest Alycia has ever seen in all her years of traveling the world on some pretty poor airlines. Corey is around 6' 4" so he was pretty cramped. Long story short--no real communication. 1 bag of pretzels and a drink during that 6 hours. Next to them sat another Air Tahitit Nui aircraft that they eventually boarded, 7 hours later, for the 8 hour flight. (I could go into a lot of details about the mis-steps of the airline. Suffice it to say they did very little right in handling their passengers.)
I bring this up not to get sympathy for Al and Corey but to share some stuff I learned about passenger rights during those 6 hours.
We don't have a lot of them but there is an organization working hard to get our congress to pass a bill with certain rights for airline travelers. It's being led by a woman named Kate.
I found her organization on the web. www.flyersrights.com I called their hotline number and was instructed to call Kate if stranded on an airplane. Moments later someone from the hotline called me back. Caller ID can be a good thing. She was going to call Kate immediately to get the media out there. This organization is doing what it can to highlight the abuse of passengers rights. Unfortunately Kate was not at home last night but she and I have been exchanging emails. Air Tahiti Nui did several things wrong, even illegal. The challenge is that, as with Al's and Corey's flight, few if any passengers do anything about it. We simply take it. And so the abuse continues. And trust me, it was a form of abuse. Ever felt like a hostage on a plane before?
Kate's group gives great insight into how to calmly yet confidently get your rights when situations like the above happen.
I recommend you put this number in your cell phone and keep it handy for the time when you are the victim of a delay like this. 707-337-0328.
By the way, with the exception of a bag of pretzels, the passengers received no food. And to my knowledge, nothing to make good on the lack of respect they experienced on the tarmac.
We can lovingly, proactively deal with these situations so that we and others are not taken advantage of. Think of it as a way of seeking justice for the shy ones on the plane who will never speak up for their rights.
Yesterday (Tuesday) Corey and Alycia were to fly from LAX to Tahiti for their honeymoon on Air Tahiti Nui, leaving at around 4:30 pm. They boarded the plane at around 4:10 and then sat at the gate for almost 6 hours! An airline passenger's worst nightmare. The legroom was the smallest Alycia has ever seen in all her years of traveling the world on some pretty poor airlines. Corey is around 6' 4" so he was pretty cramped. Long story short--no real communication. 1 bag of pretzels and a drink during that 6 hours. Next to them sat another Air Tahitit Nui aircraft that they eventually boarded, 7 hours later, for the 8 hour flight. (I could go into a lot of details about the mis-steps of the airline. Suffice it to say they did very little right in handling their passengers.)
I bring this up not to get sympathy for Al and Corey but to share some stuff I learned about passenger rights during those 6 hours.
We don't have a lot of them but there is an organization working hard to get our congress to pass a bill with certain rights for airline travelers. It's being led by a woman named Kate.
I found her organization on the web. www.flyersrights.com I called their hotline number and was instructed to call Kate if stranded on an airplane. Moments later someone from the hotline called me back. Caller ID can be a good thing. She was going to call Kate immediately to get the media out there. This organization is doing what it can to highlight the abuse of passengers rights. Unfortunately Kate was not at home last night but she and I have been exchanging emails. Air Tahiti Nui did several things wrong, even illegal. The challenge is that, as with Al's and Corey's flight, few if any passengers do anything about it. We simply take it. And so the abuse continues. And trust me, it was a form of abuse. Ever felt like a hostage on a plane before?
Kate's group gives great insight into how to calmly yet confidently get your rights when situations like the above happen.
I recommend you put this number in your cell phone and keep it handy for the time when you are the victim of a delay like this. 707-337-0328.
By the way, with the exception of a bag of pretzels, the passengers received no food. And to my knowledge, nothing to make good on the lack of respect they experienced on the tarmac.
We can lovingly, proactively deal with these situations so that we and others are not taken advantage of. Think of it as a way of seeking justice for the shy ones on the plane who will never speak up for their rights.
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