While I'm thinking about it...

Cancun

2009-06-23T10:57:00.002-04:00

April 2009 Cancun Mexico before the H1N1 outbreak! We had a great time. Phil and I flew down on a Tuesday, were greeted with icy cold champagne, and show to our lush accommodations. We spent the week eating, drinking, sunning, and also visited Chichen Itza and a cenotes to swim in icy waters!

More birthday fun!!!

2008-11-17T19:33:00.000-05:00

At 411 West celebrating dad's 75th birthday.

Dad is 75

2008-11-17T19:29:00.000-05:00

Here we are celebrating dad's 75th birthday. Happy Birthday to dad!!!

Obama wins! Yes he did!

2008-11-04T23:57:00.001-05:00

Here, on the wall of Frank's house, is the MSNBC projection that Senator Barack Obama is the President Elect of the United States.

Several of us gathered at Frank's house to watch the election results come in. What a great group of folks. We enjoyed each other's company, predictions, voting stories, food and spirits, and Sam the dog! As the evening moved on the expected results came in. Red states went red, blue states went blue and those expected to be too close to call were. Pennsylvania goes blue, Illinois goes blue, Florida is looking good, but too close to call still. And then, Ohio went blue. A cheer went up in the room, Sam barked his enthusiasm, and things started looking up. Of course then we had to start thinking of all the scenarios that could make positive, or negative changes. We continued to watch, speculate, share more stories, and wait. Probably around 9:30 or so we got the news that our incumbant Senator, Elizabeth Dole, was out. Beaten by Kay Hagan, North Carolina has a Democrat in the Senate now. Thank God. Next up, Bev Perdue is elected the first female governor of NC. Another good thing. More polls close, more electoral votes go to Obama, McCain gets some, and Grant Park in Chicago is filling up fast. We're getting more and more excited, hoping that NC, Virginia, Florida, or Indiana will turn blue. Nothing yet. No sign of either candidate either. Lots of speculation from our TV commentators. Another round of drinks and it's getting close to 11:00 PM. At 11:00 PM the west coast polls will close and could indicate that Barack Obama will take a significant lead and reach the required 270 votes needed to become our president elect. As we watch the MSNBC clock tick down, we join with Atlanta and New York crowds, counting down the hour as if it were midnight! The excitement is intense! At 11:00 PM California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii turn blue and Obama's numbers skyrocket! We're on our feet, cheering, yelling, high-fiving, hugging, crying, on our phones to our friends and families, and staring all the while at the television. Sam's pretty excited too! Though nothing is official yet, it's a done deal for those of us watching and the 1000s present at rallies all over the country. Frank uncorks the champagne and the bubbly flows! Soon enough Sen. McCain conceeds the election to Sen. Obama. Close to midnight Sen. Obama and his family make an appearance in Chicago and we listen to an inspiring and articulate speech.

Soon after the party breaks up and we head our separate ways, going out into the night hopeful for the future and still giddy from the excitement. North Carolina was still too close to call (red or blue) and still is today, even after 2:00 PM. With luck we'll know where we stand tonight and we'll be blue. Obama has a slight lead in the TarHeel state.

I've been trying to keep an eye on Proposition 8 in CA, the proposition that would ban gay marriages. It looks like it'll pass (a bad thing in my opinon). Tsk. Tsk.

I voted

2008-11-04T11:04:00.002-05:00

I voted! Number 43 this morning. There were no lines. I heard one of the precinct workers commenting that of the 2500 voters in my precinct more than 51% had voted early. I waited. It didn't prove to be disasterous. And have you heard about all the free stuff you can get for voting and showing up with your sticker: Starbucks coffee, Krispy Kreme donuts, Ben & Jerry's ice cream, Chick Fil-A sandwiches, mobile phone minutes, champagne in Anaheim CA, and um, other things!

I'll be heading over to Frank's place after work, after dark, and watch the results come in with him and several other co-workers. Should be an interesting evening.

Halloween II

2008-10-31T23:43:00.003-04:00

All week I've seen signs, literally and figuratively, of the changes that Chspel Hill is putting in place in order to control crowds tonight. So, on my way out of town I decided to brave the downtown area and see what's what. Amazing!! Some of my favorite restaurants are closed for the evening, port-a-potties are everywhere, at 6:30 police were thick and walking around in force, baricades and blocked parking spots were noticeable, some parking lots are already full, and others have been chained closed. Even the news teams were kept at bay and forced to park away from the downtown area! Amazing!! I thought that since most of the Triangle area will be trying to get to Franklin St. I'd head to Southpoint Mall and do a little shopping, have a little dinner, and go see a movie. Score! It was the best call. The place was deserted. I was amazed. It took no time to find parking, I got my movie ticket early, walked to Belks, got a sweet deal on a dress and some tights, and then had a lovely dinner. Usually on a Friday this restaurant has a 2 plus hour wait. Nope, not tonight! I was whisked to my table and had a nice time. Next off to the movies. I never go to the movies. I saw 'W' and it was great. I recommend it. It's very well done and quite funny too.

On the way home I hoped I'd have no trouble getting back to my place. I did not. I did encounter a large group of policemen making sure people were not parking on side streets, or the side of the street, and in the spirit of the night one of the policemen was wearing a pig mask. Get it?! Funny! I made it home safely, saw lots of trick or treaters, and am now, off to bed. Ta ta!

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T10:34:00.003-04:00

It's Halloween in Chapel Hill and you know what that means! Thousands descend on the quiet little college town dressed in their scariest. Last year brought 80,000 partiers to Franklin Street. This year the town decided that was about 79,000 too many! Ok, a bit of an exaggeration there. Still, local merchants and the town council wanted to make some significant changes to lessen the crowds and the potential for problems. The answer a Homegrown Halloween. See the town's website for more: http://www.townofchapelhill.org/index.asp?nid=127

You can also hear Chapel Hill's mayor, Kevin Foy, on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN6cDbW9MK4

I'll be interested in what this does to the revelers and if the crowds are significantly fewer.

I'm Dreaming...

2008-10-28T15:07:00.002-04:00

Of a White Christmas...

I love snow! With any luck I'll get to see some this winter! I'm going to see White Christmas in Minneapolis! Can't wait! I'm already planning a shopping trip for mittens, scarves, even hats. Yep, I'm dreaming...

All I need is a cool beret...

2008-10-28T15:05:00.001-04:00

When you think of Minneapolis what's the first thing you think of? For me, it's cold. Then snow. Then Mary Tyler Moore. Or, more appropriately it's Mary Richards of WJM-TV. Remember the theme song, written by Paul Williams:

Who can turn the world on with her smile?
Who can take a nothing day, and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile?
Well it's you girl, and you should know it.
With each glance and every little movement you show it.

Love is all around, no need to waste it
You can have a town, why don't you take it
You're gonna make it after all
You're gonna make it after all

How will you make it on your own?
This world is awfully big, girl this time you're all alone.
But it's time you started living.
It's time you let someone else do some giving

Love is all around, no need to waste it.
You can have a town, why don't you take it.
You're gonna make it after all.
You're gonna make it after all

I'm headed to Minneapolis! That's right, going north, heading into truly cold weather. My sister-in-law's sister is working the show White Christmas and I'm going to visit. I can't wait. I'm excited about visiting with her and also to see the show, but mostly, I'm thrilled to think I'll experience some real winter weather. My buddy Walt say's Minn. will probably have a warm snap. Nah! Not gonna happen

Adrianne, Peter and Grace

2008-10-28T15:04:00.002-04:00

Here they are, three of my favorite people in the world. Adrianne, Peter and Grace. We're celebrating A's 26th birthday. Good gravy. 26. That's half-way to 52. She loved that!

Dad and Peter

2008-10-28T15:03:00.002-04:00

Dad's giving Meg the evil eye! 'Bout time...

Adrianne and Grace

2008-10-28T15:02:00.002-04:00

Gorgeous Girls!

Dinner at Sunset

2008-10-28T15:01:00.002-04:00

Several of us celebrated Frank and Walt's birthdays (one day apart) by going to Top of the Hill and enjoying fine libations and eventually dinner. Top of the Hill, or TOPO as the locals call it, is a beautiful restaurant on the corner of Franklin and Columbia Streets right in the middle of Chapel Hill. They have a brewery onsite and brew a fine selection of beer. And the food is great, always reliable, fresh, delicious. The view speaks for itself. The sunset was superb and the evening was full of great conversation, drink, food, and company.

Glamour Shots

2008-10-28T15:00:00.002-04:00

Isn't she lovely? We're enjoying dinner al fresco. Lovely evening. Lovely girl!

Mini Clementines

2008-10-14T15:09:00.001-04:00

Yum! If I had an orange Mini Cooper I would name it Clemmie!

Another reason to LOVE your iPhone

2008-10-14T15:05:00.001-04:00

Monday night, in the grocery store and didn't have a list of the
ingredients I need for a birthday cake I'll make Adrianne. No problem!
Find it on my iPhone!!! Got it! Got the ingredients. I'm rocking and
rolling! Course, now I have to actually bake it. I don't bake. Sigh.

A joust anyone?

2008-10-14T14:58:00.002-04:00

Saturday was Adrianne's 26th birthday and we drove to Charlotte to the Renaissance Festival. We had a great day, the weather was gorgeous, and we saw lots of cool stuff! Including the joust. We ate and drank, walked, admired costumes, Adrianne wore hers, and had a great time driving down and back. On the way home we stopped in Burlington and met dad for dinner.

Sunday dad, Adrianne, Meg, Betsy and I went to Duke university to The Nasher museum to see a Spanish painting exhibit of El Greco and Velasquez's works, which was great.

A very nice weekend!! Happy Birthday Adrianne!!! xxoo mom

Grace's birthday party!!

2008-10-06T20:53:00.002-04:00

Grace is EIGHT YEARS OLD. I can't believe it! I remember vividly the day she was born. What a sweet little girl! We had a great dinner at Meg's house including one of our family standbys, and favorites, hamburger gravy and mashed potatoes. This was followed by a delicious ice cream cake (picture to come). This was at least the third celebration Grace had; her paternal grandparents Grammy and Grandpa Bob were visiting over the weekend of her actual birthday and they had a wonderful celebration. Sunday, Oct. 5, Grace entertained several of her friends at a party at The Original Ornament, a bead store in Carrboro. Grace and her friends spent their time making bracelets, and enjoying pizza and cupcakes. She proclaimed it a wonderful birthday! Then, Monday night, the family party at her house. Granddaddy decided to play a trick on her; he gives each of his grandchildren $50 for their birthday. He'd asked Grace earlier this year if she remembered what he gave her. She said no, she did not, so he decided that this year he'd tease her and give her a card with eight dollars in it. Then, he'd ask her again if she remembered what he gave her last year. Regardless of her answer he'd tease and say that if she could tell him the difference between 50 and 8 he'd hand over the cash. Of course, he had every intention of doing that anyway. Just teasing, remember? Grace opened her card from him, said "Wow! Eight dollars!! Hey, last year you gave me $70!!!" Adrianne and I cracked up!!! That'll teach granddad to tease!! He clarified, didn't even try for the math, and give her the remaining $42. Silly girl!!

What a wonderful and fun filled evening celebrating Grace's 8th
birthday!! I got to wear the tiara!

Wine Dinner

2008-09-26T22:16:00.001-04:00

Wine and a silver teapot. Hmmm. What can it mean? It means Melissa is in town and we're having a dinner party! Yep, Martha and Martha are cooking it up. We planned a fabulous wine dinner for several of our mutual friends. Melissa came on Friday, we rearranged the house, deck and did some quick sprucing up around the yard and then spent Saturday cooking. We had a lovely dinner Saturday night and despite the surprise thunderstorm everyone arrived happy and hungry.

The pre- party

Adrianne and Marina

2008-09-23T22:58:00.001-04:00

Marina, Adrianne's best friend from college who lives in Greece by the way, is visiting the US for a long month, attending many weddings, visiting her family and visiting Adrianne! I can't tell you how thrilled these two were to see each other after 2 long years! Marina arrived on a Monday and stayed till Thursday before heading back to the Atlanta social scene. It was great to see her! She's doing well, teaching English in Greece, lives in a suburb of Athens, has a great boyfriend, and some hysterical stories of apartment life in the city! She and Adrianne had a great, great time together. She shared some wonderful Greek recipes with Adrianne too. Below, Adrianne, Marina and I are at 411 for dinner. Yum!

Marina is visiting from Greece.

Even...

2008-09-23T22:57:00.002-04:00

Yes, even a springform pan. Silly girl!!

Adrianne and her Mary Poppins bag...

2008-09-23T22:56:00.002-04:00

Seriously, she keeps everything in there!!

And seriously, I don't know how I do these things! Maybe it was the wine. Thank you Trina (whose name I occasionally misspell as T R A I N - all the right letters, all the wrong places...) for pointing out that I originally titled this A F R O and her Mary Poppins Bag. Good Heavens! I don't think Adrianne noticed it. It was supposed to be titled ADRI and her Mary Poppins Bag. Oh my. Well, yes, Adrianne has a huge purse and keeps everything in there. Maybe I can get her to carry a dictionary?!

The Mecca for breakfast

2008-09-14T10:31:00.001-04:00

On a Sunday morning you won't find a more popular spot for breakfast than Elmo's. Old and young alike pour into the place hungry as wolves. Today I'm in the back with a great view of the place, the patrons, and the well choreographed dance the servers execute. Hot coffee, the
Independant Weekly and a tummy breakfast. What better way to start a Sunday?

Adrianne cut her hair!!!

2008-09-14T10:03:00.000-04:00

Adrianne & Ricky enjoying a martini

2008-09-08T16:27:00.001-04:00

Here we are at Dick & Jane's on Saturday night! The place was really
busy.

Martini anyone?

2008-09-06T22:56:00.004-04:00

Ah, what's better than an icy cold martini? We headed to Dick & Jane's Martini Bar tonight. It's a great little bar in downtown Mebane, with good food, great drinks, and friendly folks (it IS Mebane you know)! It's about a 20 minute drive from Carrboro, and from Burlington, so dad met us (me, A, Ricky, David and Meg). Big fun! When we arrived, in stages as is typical of our family, Meg, David and I noticed that 2 patrons were sitting on the floor. Hmmm, this begged for more information. The waitress rolled her eyes in their direction when we entered and told us to feel free to sit anywhere we liked, she'd be right with us! We chose a table away from the action and Jane greeted us warmly. She explained that this couple, and their third, had arrived close to opening time and downed 3 martinis in about 30 minutes. Despite the picture above, these aren't sissy martinis. Oh no, these can stand up to the big boys and this three-some were ordering Blue Blues, Sapphire Blue gin with blue cheese stuffed olives. Yum! Anyway, a third drink later, a slip on the barstool and they were on the floor. Fortunately they were ok and made up for their slippery state by resuming their place on the barstools in the window and smooching away. Close your eyes Adrianne, these folks were well over 50!!! The evening continued from there, with far less excitement. Dad arrived, Adrianne and Ricky arrived, we enjoyed some delicious food and martinis, and good conversation. And, a little football to boot. Not a bad way to end a Saturday.

Duke wins with Carolina Game Ball?

2008-09-01T22:19:00.003-04:00

I dropped by my dad's place this afternoon. He told me the funniest story about the UNC / McNeese State football game on Saturday. Apparently, the weather was bad (and caused a delay in the game later on) and the pilots didn't parachute into Kenan Stadium with the game ball. Instead they jumped into another stadium about 8 miles away. Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, home of the Blue Devils. Players from both teams (Duke and James Madison) were surprised to say the least. Read more here:
http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/unc/story/1200990.html

3,841 Miles. . .

2008-09-01T22:05:00.003-04:00

from Carrboro to Juneau Alaska. . . and no sign of a bear. I'm home for a week, go away for one weekend, and while driving on the Blueridge Parkway spot a black bear.

Mmmmmmm....pie

2008-09-01T21:55:00.002-04:00

It's berry-licious! Fresh blueberry pie. And I NEVER bake. What's come over me?

Earlier today

2008-08-26T21:09:00.002-04:00

Earlier today the giant mushroom looked like this. Humidity. Fresh mulch. Dewy weather. Perfect conditions for mushrooms.

What is this???

2008-08-26T21:08:00.003-04:00

I got home this afternoon and found this growning in my garden. I didn't plant it! It's what happens after days of humidity and high dewpoint levels! Mushrooms!! They sprung up next to my tarragon. I wonder if they'll be scented?

Funniest thing I've heard all day

2008-08-26T16:36:00.002-04:00

I'm not sure of the context of this statement, but it made me laugh: "She just needs Jesus. Jesus and a therapist." Um. Ok.

Back to work

2008-08-25T22:53:00.003-04:00

Yep, it had to end. The vacation that is. What a great one it was! Today I headed back to the office and got to park in my underground parking garage spot! Whooo hooo...life is good (that was the perq for being employee of the month!). Not too bad of a day. I had 28 phone messages, and about 78 emails to deal with. I had lunch with Adrianne today too, which is always a treat.

There were no emergencies today, everything was pretty quiet, no servers crashed, no users crashed, and at the end of the day our VP treated us to a nice evening out to celebrate the successful completion of several major projects. I ended the day with a great Pilates class and some very encouraging words from the instructor. Progress is being made. Have I said whooo hooo?! A good day. I get to do it again tomorrow...

Mom and Dad on a glacier in Switzerland

2008-08-24T22:42:00.002-04:00

As we were preparing for our great Alaskan adventure dad recalled that he and mom cruised to Europe in 1958, 50 years ago also on a Dutch ocean liner. Of course, it was not what we know as a traditional cruise ship, but still a very nice trip across the Atlantic. Here they are with friends in Switzerland hanging out on a glacier. Dad is second from the right, standing, and mom is in the red coat. Brrrrrrrrrrrr.

What's missing?

2008-08-24T22:36:00.002-04:00

What's missing from this picture? Purell!! I miss the Purell dispensers that were EVERYWHERE on the ship. Trina agreed. It was nice to know clean hands and a germ free environment were only a swipe and a spurtz away.

Reeds

2008-08-23T21:29:00.001-04:00

Another amazing glass sculpture.

Not to be left out

2008-08-23T16:36:00.000-04:00

Jack had to get in on the napping action too. We had a lovely nap, until about 1:30, in the afternoon. Yeah. Nice.

There's no place like home

2008-08-23T16:35:00.001-04:00

Be it ever so humble! I left San Francisco Friday night on a late flight direct to Charlotte. Great flight by the way. The plane, while full, was decently comfy, the air functioning, I claimed my window seat, got out my blankie and pillow (airlines are seriously NO FRINGE these days), and drifted off to sleep. I think I woke about 20 minutes outside of Charlotte when our pilot announced it was time to put up all tray tables, seatbacks and turn off electronic devices. Charlotte is one huge sprawling city. I think it stretches from Memphis to Hickory. The flights were in on time, even early, and I had my bags before dad was at the airport. We stopped for breakfast on the way home, picked up my car, and by 10 I was home. By 10:15 I was in bed. Still needed a bit of a nap. My kitties missed me apparently. Dusty hopped right up on the bed (me) and was ready for a snooze.

Chihuly basket designs

2008-08-22T20:56:00.000-04:00

Chihuly 4

2008-08-22T20:50:00.000-04:00

Chihuly 3

2008-08-22T20:49:00.000-04:00

Chihuly Rowboat with Glass Balls

2008-08-22T20:48:00.002-04:00

Here's another picture from the Chihuly exhibit. This rowboat is full of glass balls. Pretty cool, huh? It was a spectacular day. Each room made us catch our breath and gasp in wonder and amazement.

Chihuly Boats 1

2008-08-22T20:48:00.001-04:00

This is one of the parts of the exhibit we saw at the de Young museum today. The Dale Chihuly blown glass exhibit. This is a portion of his two boats filled with glass pieces. More photos to come!

The Pacific thru the fog

2008-08-22T20:45:00.000-04:00

In Eureka Valley this morning the sky was a brilliant blue and the air was just perfectly clear and clean. We headed out about 11 this morning with Henry and Barb (Trina's parents) for lunch at U-Lee's an incredible Chinese restaurant. It's a tiny place that Trina found when she was in art school. Seriously, it's a very small restaurant, probably seating 20 - 25 tops during peak seating. It's a small family run operation, they cook to order and the food is just amazing. We had chicken wings, hot and sour soup, giant potstickers, and curry beef chow mein. And tea. Amazing! The potstickers are HUGE. After lunch we drove across town to the de Young museum (http://www.famsf.org/deyoung/index.asp) at Golden Gate Park. We had tickets to the Dale Chihuly blown glass exhibit. Check this out: http://www.chihulyatthedeyoung.org/ Fantastic exhibit. Each room just made us gasp. I'll have some photos up soon. After the exhibit we moved thru the rest of the museum and ended up on top of the museum on their 9th floor observation deck. The view of the city is great, more so on a sunny day than a foggy one, but hey, this is San Francisco afterall! The picture below is from the observation deck, looking toward the Pacific. It's there! Really it is! Another fabulous day. I'm departing tonight, my flight leaves at 10:30, unless we're fogged in. Let's hope not.

No matter where you are...

2008-08-22T14:19:00.001-04:00

It's there! The TransAmerica Building can be seen everywhere in San Francisco. I love it, it's a very interesting building and on Wednesday, after our day downtown, we walked past it in the financial district.

Beach Blanket Babylon

2008-08-22T13:56:00.001-04:00

Last night, my last full night in San Francisco, we all went to see Beach Blanket Babylon, the "longest running musical revue in history." It was fantastic! My friend Pam suggested that I go, she and her husband had seen it years ago, and so I asked Dick and Trina if this was something we could do. They'd both been before, but it had been 8 or more years, and said, in two separate emails "yes! BBB is the quintessential San Francisco production!!" so, it was a done deal. Trina's parents went and D & T's good friend Christopher went too. We had a ball. The show has a simple plot, Snow White is looking far and wide for her Prince Charming, starting in, of all places, San Francsico! She meets many interesting characters along the way including pop stars, politicians, other characters, helpful Jewish mothers, helpful Italian mothers, helpful country and western singers, and the like. The show parodies current events, and had a heyday with our upcoming election and political figures. We saw Hillary, Obama & Michelle, the elusive Dick Cheney, George W, some local politicians, Nancy Pelosi and I suppose they felt they couldn't end the evening without mention of our own John Edwards and his fall from grace. Sheeesh. It was a wonderful evening and the hats (one thing the show is famous for) didn't disappoint. The show ended with Snow White finally having found her prince and she returns to the stage wearing a 4 tiered wedding cake that opens to reveal the 7 dwarfs. Check out some show pictures here: http://www.beachblanketbabylon.com/what/index.shtml And our Italian / Jewish / Country & Western hostess wore the massive skyline of San Francisco on her head! It was great, lit up while the chorus was singing San Francisco Open Your Golden Gate... and the TransAmerica building, which by the way you can see everywhere...it's a bit creepy, was rising tall and proud! What a fun show!

Tea Anyone?

2008-08-21T22:37:00.000-04:00

Just a few of the many varieties of tea offered at the tea house in Chinatown.

Tea for Two or More...

2008-08-21T22:35:00.000-04:00

Trina and I spent the afternoon in a tea tasting house in Chinatown. She'd been a few weeks ago and saw a tea there called Golden Throat. Knowing I sing, and that I like tea, she thought it might be something I'd be interested in. I sure was! We entered the tea house, sat at the counter and were served tiny cups of various teas. Our host, John, was completely entertaining and explained the many properties of tea and of each tea we tasted. I tried the Golden Throat, liked it, and purchased some. We met a family from Spain there (from the Basque country, visiting LA, San Diego, and San Francisco), and a young woman who's here to attend the University of San Francisco in a week. She moves into her dorm on Saturday. She and her mom were strolling thru Chinatown, saw the shop and decided to check it out. As seems our pattern this week we spent a long time in the tea shop, but enjoyed every minute of it.

Lunch at the Cliff House

2008-08-21T20:12:00.000-04:00

The Cliff House is one of my favorite places to visit when I'm in San Francisco. It's a beautiful building that sits on the coast overlooking the Pacific ocean. First built in 1863, a second Cliff house was built in 1896 after the first was destroyed by fire. The second was built by Adolf Sutro, a millionaire and at one time mayor of San Francisco. The second survived the 1906 earthquake but was destroyed by fire the next year. A third Cliff House was built in 1909 by Sutro's daughter Emma. It carried on the tradition of sumptuous dining. The National Park Service acquired it in 1977. Today the Cliff House is preserved as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. And, it serves a great Bloody Mary and a wonderful Crab Louie salad. Trina and I had lunch there on Tuesday, after another morning walk. The coast was foggy, as is pretty typical, yet we had a nice view of the ocean and Seal Rock just out our window. I was watching 2 birds in the water thinking how cold it must be and then realized they were not birds at all but surfers! Silly me!! Soon, a half dozen or so joined these two and they caught some decent waves. No view of the Golden Gate in the fog, and no view of the lovely Marin Co. coastline either. We enjoyed our lunch and chatted for hours, literally. Our waiter finally asked if we could close out our check so he could leave (no kidding) and we looked at my phone and gasped! It was 4:00 PM. We'd agreed to meet Trina's mom Barb at 3:30 at home. Home was a good 20 minutes away. Yikes!! Barb is a good sport and thankfully had her iPhone with video with her so she wasn't bored. We tore thru the neighborhoods till we reached D & T's and made profuse apologies. After quick hellos Barb and I went to the store. The Chows were coming for dinner (Henry, Barb, Tiffany and her boyfriend Graham) and we had work to do. The evening ended quite pleasantly, with a nice meal, good wine, and excellent conversation.

The fire hydrant that saved San Francisco in 1906

2008-08-20T01:54:00.001-04:00

After our tour of Mission Delores Trina and I walked thru Delores Park to the street where the golden fire hydrant is. This is the fire hydrant that saved San Francisco from burning completely to the ground after the 1906 earthquake and many fires that started. Apparently the residents of Delores Heights at that time stood and watched the fires sweep the city (and from this point in San Francisco there's a heck of a view) and knew they were coming their way. Water was scarce but not from this little guy below. This was one of the few remaining hydrants that worked and thus saved the entire city from going up in smoke. Each year on the anniversary of the Great Earthquake this hydrant is given a fresh coat of paint.

The original cemetary at Mission Delores

2008-08-20T01:53:00.001-04:00

One of many views from within the cemetary at Mission Delores

In the Basilica Adjacent to Mission Delores

2008-08-20T01:52:00.001-04:00

The Basilica at Mission Delores was built after the earthquake and fire of 1906 and is a beautiful structure. There are several stained glass windows throughout, many that are simply colored glass, not the traditional church stained glass depicting events in Christ's life, or death. At the front of this church is a stained glass window with a picture of St. Francis of Assisi. No picture here because the lighting was always wrong. There are some of the more traditional stained glass panels in the basilica; noteably one for each of the 21 missions in California. Here, above the altar, is a mosaic and bust of the Virgin Mary.

Altar in the old Mission Delores

2008-08-20T01:51:00.001-04:00

The altar in the older mission building.

Mission Delores

2008-08-20T01:50:00.001-04:00

Tuesday Trina and I were up early again and headed out for another great walk through the various neighborhoods. We first walked to Tartine Bakery for their famous morning buns and coffee. Tartine's is so famous for their buns, breads, cakes, and other yummy offerings that there's no sign in front of their establishment. People just know...Or, they follow their nose. After breakfast we walked to the Mission Delores which I'd never visited. The mission was built in the mid-1800s and has grown since. The original building is open to the public and there's a nice tour built around it, the newer basilica, and the cemetary. The mission survived the 1906 earthquake and fires, barely, and there's a small museum adjacent to the cemetary with an interesting assortment of artifacts that were found when rebuilding and also when building the basilica. The cemetary is full of interesting headstones and statues and beautiful flowers. Below is the sanctuary of the original mission.

The Mission District and the Women's Center

2008-08-19T02:25:00.001-04:00

Isn't this cool?! This is the Women's Center in the Mission District in San Francisco. Trina and I had a great day; slept in a bit, she went to a pilates session, breakfast was light (no verandah, sigh...), then we walked out for tea and lunch at Samovar. It was delicious. We each chose a tea and then shared a fruit and cheese tray and had a sandwich. All very tasty and in a relaxing space. After lunch we walked several blocks, covering streets 18 - 24 and between Valencia, Guerrera, Delores, Noe, and Castro. We walked 3 or 4 miles and in doing so passed Dick's old house on 23rd street (still looks great) and then the house he and Pete rented in Noe Valley many years ago. It was a great walk. We ended up at home about 3:30 in the afternoon.

Uncle Edward joined us about 5:30 for drinks and stories of our Alaskan cruise, and Dick was home an hour or so later. We walked to Catch for dinner, a neighborhood restaurant specializing in fish, and had a great time eating, talking, catching up, and figuring out important things like the next Chinese New Year celebration. All very important. Uncle Edward has been a resident of San Francisco for 40+ years and loves it. He told stories of how neighborhoods had changed (for instance, the Castro has only been the gay Castro since the 80s, prior to that it was an Italian neighborhood), and entertained us with some history of San Francisco as he knew it.

After dessert and coffee we headed out. Edward walked home rather than taking MUNI, claiming he desparately needed the walk. Pshaw! He looks great and seems to be in very good spirits. D, T, and I walked too; we definitely needed it!

The week is lazy, but planned. Tomorrow the Chows are coming for dinner - Henry, Barb, Tiffany, and her boyfriend Graham. I'll cook, they'll eat. Trina and I have errands to run in the morning and no plans till Barb gets here around 3. The rest of the week has plans off and on and I'm sure it'll pass much faster than I'd like for it to!

The Eyes Have It

2008-08-19T02:09:00.001-04:00

Isn't there some Hall and Oates song about eyes, that are watching you? I'm too lazy to go to lyrics.com to find it. This is one wall in the room I'm staying in at D & T's house! Trina collects Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls and has since she was tiny, 2 years old! She has an enormous collection. This is only a small portion of the 5 bazillion she has. Really. She has these in 3 display cases and they are in various shapes and sizes, and one really has to see them to believe them.

Check out her site: http://www.trinachow.com/raggedy/index.html

Anyway, in past visits I have not stayed in this room because all those eyes kind of creeps me out. I know, it's a Kathy thing. I can't help it. I'm usually here with someone else and am all too happy to take the Aerobed on the living room floor. It's comfy! But this time, I went for the guest room! I made it thru the night (none of these glow in the dark) and Trina didn't even have to cover them with sheets! Yeah!!! I'm growing I guess.

Seriously, it's a great collection. It's quite impressive and she has more dolls at her parent's house in Milpitas.

A 2 Million Dollar View, Sunday August 17

2008-08-19T01:25:00.001-04:00

House two on the quickie open house adventure had a spectacular view of the city and the bay from the deck off of the master bedroom. The house is listed at 2.4 million and we agreed the view is worth 2 million. The .4 is the rest of the house! It was lovely, very new and modern, with very nice tile work in the kitchen and 3 full baths, but there were some details that were not as nice as they should have been and others that I thought were just odd. For example, it's very vogue to now leave an open space between the window casings and the wall, or the baseboard and floor. Not my style. To me it looks like something important is missing! Thankfully, my 2.4 million will be spent elsewhere.

After the viewings we went to their house (one I love) and caught up for a bit. It had been over 24 hours since we'd seen each other! We walked to the store to buy dinner supplies, then Trina and I headed off to a neighboring market in search of fresh basil. Dick fixed potato leek soup and we had a fresh tomato salad. Trina and I added fresh mozzarella and basil to ours, Dick stayed away from the cheese. We enjoyed a great pinot noir with dinner, then after cleaning up I watched Dick, Trina, Pete and someone else (sorry, can't remember the name) play Gears of War. Hysterical! Trina's a wild woman with a shotgun! Great game though!

In bed by 9:00 and asleep soon after. Vacationing is hard!

Sunday in San Francisco means an Open House!

2008-08-19T01:20:00.001-04:00

One of Dick and Trina's favorite things to do on a Sunday afternoon is to visit open houses in their neighborhood, or other neighborhoods. They do this frequently. My flight from Seattle arrived late, about 40 minutes late, and as we drove into the city they asked if it'd be ok if we went by a couple of open houses that were close by! Of course!!! I'd actually thought we might, knowing that this is something they enjoy and was looking forward to a bit of a walk after sitting for a couple of hours. So we did! The first was a lovely Victorian full of period furniture and beautiful chandeliers like the one above. I just loved it!

Everybody's Blogging

2008-08-17T13:39:00.000-04:00

Some Photos!

2008-08-17T03:17:00.001-04:00

Finally, a few photos have been added. Look at the little slideshow to the far right. These begin with a few shots in Seattle the first day (August 8) and go thru our time in Juneau.

You can watch the tiny slideshow, or click on the picture and it'll open Picasa Web Albums and you can go thru the pictures quickly or at your leisure and on some there are captions.

I'll add a link to Adrianne YouTube films when she gets them up, and in the next few days there will be more photos from me. Enjoy!

Summer in Seattle

2008-08-16T23:39:00.000-04:00

Saturday, August 16, 2008
Seattle Washington
We woke this morning to bright sunshine and still ship! We were in port in Seattle. Our family wisely selected the latest departure time so we had time for last minute packing and a final breakfast on the Lido Deck. Very nice. We looked out over the docks in Seattle and recalled a week before, same place, a little later in the day, where we gathered full of excitement. There was a bit of sadness on everyone's part, the trip was so incredible and amazing it was hard to leave. Peter and I discussed our options for becoming stow-aways. He had a great plan for himself, sadly I would not fit in the same hiding place. Oh well, vacations must end. We left the boat at 9:30 AM, returned to the US, actaully had our passports checked, left our customs declarations, and then searched in vain for our scheduled shuttle. Meg and I had made reservations at a hotel near the airport which included a post-cruise shuttle. This was a flipping nightmare. We were shuffled back and forth along a LONG strech of sidewalk being told to go first left, then right, then left, until finally I got thru to the shuttle driver who assured us that a van was on its way. And it was! I thought this was no fault of the shuttle company but bad planning and organization on the hotel's part. Finally, we were in the shuttle and traveled the few miles from port to hotel. Thankfully our rooms were ready and we came in and flopped. Adrianne and I decided to head into Seattle and am so glad we did. The day was beautiful but HOT. Seattlites were stunned (by the heat I'm sure). Apparently the last 2 days were very, very hot with temperatures in the upper 80s and low 90s. Not the usual 70 degree temps they're used to. We managed. We strolled thru Pike Place Market eyes huge at the beautiful selections of fresh fruits and vegetables, the fresh fish - huge king salmon, whole tilapia, giant lobster tails, shrimp, scallops, clams and mussels, and 8 inch long oysters. And more fish. We saw the fishmongers tossing fish to each other over the heads of the crowd. We saw gorgeous bouquets of fresh lillies, dahlias and sunflowers, and other stands selling crafts, honey, cheeses, smoked fish and meats, and jewelry. After the market we walked along the water and found a spot for lunch. We ate outside and watched the Norweigan cruise line load its passengers. More walking after lunch exploring a little bit of Seattle here and there then back to our hotel so Adrianne could nap and shower. She'll be traveling home tonight with M, P, G, and dad. I'm heading to San Francisco in the morning to spend a week with Dick and Trina, although with plans Trina has made, I might not be home until October! Should be a good visit. We're going to the Chihuly exhibit at the de Young, there's an exhibit of Frida Kahlo's art at SFMOMA that I hope to see, and a group of us is going to go see Beach Blanket Babylon, THE San Francisco show. I'm excited! It's been on a 30 year run or something ridiculously long like that! It'll be a fun week.

A Final Day at Sea

2008-08-16T23:36:00.000-04:00

Friday, August 15, 2008 At sea, much calmer. Breakfast in our room, then back to bed, vacationing is hard! Up around 11:00 (in a new time zone - Pacific), to the spa pools, had lunch in the Lido dining room, and finally started packing up. Sad! By mid afternoon, 3:00 PM or so, we were out of some dense fog, and back in calmer waters again, just west of Vancouver Island headed to Victoria. It was noticably warmer today than the past 4 or 5 and the sun was finally peeking out from the clouds. By this time the fog had lifted too. We met Dick & Trina in the Crow's Nest, a forward facing bar on the 10th deck with great views of all we're approaching. Drinks, some hors d'oeuvres, then pulled into Victoria's port, backwards so we can get out again! Getting into Canadian waters, and into Canada's port required the assistance of 3 pilot boats. Not ever a problem, just interesting, and in Victoria, or as we appraoched, we actually saw the pilot boats. Other times it's been very late PM, or very early AM, when they've approached or the sea's were bad (for instance leaving Hubbard Glacier a pilot boat came out and led us out of those waters, then left, but by this time it was 4:30 or 5:00 PM and the seas were quite high). So, we had drinks in the Crow's Nest and then everyone left except me and Adrianne. Dick and Trina had an excursion to the Butchart Gardens, acres and acres of immaculate gardens about 30 minutes north of the city; dad, Meg, Peter and Grace took a horse drawn trolley into and around the city, and then hit the boat for dinner. Adrianne and I watched our boat dock from the 10th deck outside, watched the Golden Princess who had stayed just behind us all cruise, then decided we'd hop off and go exploring. Glad we did. Victoria is a beautiful city. We took a cab into downtown, unbelievably the least expensive way to get around, then walked for quite some time. We walked to and thru The Empress Hotel, a magnificant, old hotel that overlooks the marina. The hotel has beautiful gardens and many types of flowers were in bloom, giant hydrangeas, roses, geraniums, tons of things I don't know the names of...and more! We looked in some of the lovely shops and strolled thru the lobby then headed out and walked around Government Street, one of the main shopping streets. We found a nice restaurant on the water and had dinner there; I went for a slightly more traditional meal of fish and chips, while Adrianne indulged in their soup o'day (an Irish stew complete with a hearty slug of Guinness) and honey soy glazed chicken wings, which were very tasty indeed! My fish (halibut) and chips were very good too. We also had their recommended beer, a citrus Hefeweizen. Adrianne came down with a cold late Thursday so after dinner we ventured out of the tourist area and walked about 6 blocks north into the neighborhoods and found a drugstore, London Drugs. An adventure! We also noticed an unusual number of Starbuck's Coffees along the way. I think we counted 7 in the small area we covered, AND there were an equal number of independent coffee houses as well. Apparently coffee is big in Victoria. We found all she needed to be on the mend, and walked back toward the water and did some looking around in the shops. About 10:00 PM we decided to call it a night, hailed a cab, and headed back to the ship. We had no trouble leaving Canada, in fact, no one seemed to care whether we had passports or not! Each time we left the ship we were instructed to have 'a government issued photo ID with us to present upon disembarking and embarking the ms Oosterdam' and we never needed it! I'm sure however that if we had not had it we'd have needed it. Kathy's Rules of Order or something like that. Adri and I boarded the ship, headed back to our room, were not at all inspired to finish up any packing, so we called dad/granddad and trekked back up to the Crow's Nest for a nightcap. Dick and Trina joined us and we enjoyed the evening, waiting until 11;30 when the ms Oosterdam pulled away from Victoria's docks, right on time. We were led out into the waters by our trusty pilot, then headed south to Seattle. The journey to Seattle took about 4 1/2 hours so we traveled slowly, I guess, and made it to Elliott Bay by about 4:30 AM. Not a problem, we were sound asleep in our comfy stateroom.

What to do at sea?

2008-08-16T23:14:00.000-04:00

Thursday, August 14, 2008
1:00 PM
Traveling from Ketchikan to Victoria, BC (arriving 6:00 PM on Friday, August 15). The late afternoon was spent in the spa, hydrotherapy mineral pools, saunas, and on deck walking around. Even later we napped and my brother and I had accupuncture treatments (not together). Adrianne and I also relaxed with the spa's in-port specials, 3 treatments in an hour. We each had a stone massage which was fantastic. I do not know how I'm going to return to my normal life! Hmmmm, maybe I can convince Scotty or Marta to get into stone massage? Thursday afternoon we also participated in the Indonesia Tea Ceremony which wasn't very cermonial but was nice. The tea was good and the food served with was very good and traditional Indonesia food. After tea dad and I walked the Promenade deck, watched the sea and enjoyed the cooler air. We gathered for drinks in the Ocean Bar (our new favorite place), then dinner in the Pinnacle Grill. Our evening meal was sans Peter and Grace, who were safely tucked away in Club HAL and loving it. Peter claimed he did not, but he had hours of video games at his disposal so he was happy. Grace totally gets into the Club HAL experience partly I think because she really enjoys being the oldest in this situation, or one of the oldest. I'm all about that!

The rest of us had made reservations at the ship's 5 Star restaurant, The Pinnacle Grill and thoroughly enjoyed it. All of our meals have been good, have been served very nicely (good presentation, not too much garnish, very sensible portions so if you really wan to have two shrimp cocktails you can), and have been hot (or cold when appropriate), but this one really was over the top. Again, and amuse bouche to start the evening, smoked salmon in nori with a pepper salsa. The North Carolinians in the group all got the beefsteak tomatoe starter (3 slices of beefsteak tomatoes that WERE flavorful), Trina had the crab cakes. Then onto the entrees. We went for beef, all six of us. The beef was exceptional. And the service also was extremely good. We had a wonderful dinner, our planned celebration of dad's upcoming birthday. We did have an earlier celebration that included Peter and Grace on one of our formal nights. This was fun and afterwards we mosied up to the Lido where the Dessert Extraveganza was going on. I've never seen so much chocolate and sweets ever. Seriously, too much sugar! There was a lot of creativity though in the presentation. We saw our ship, icebergs, polar bears, and swirly things all over. Dad and I took a late walk around the Promenade deck again and found, to our delight, a gibbous moon and a clear sky! We saw actual stars, Venus, and the moon shining down on the ocean. It was quite a site.

Floatplane touches down in Ketchikan

2008-08-16T22:25:00.000-04:00

A tiny floatplane touches down in the water just outside Ketchikan. There were dozens that took off the morning we arrived. 7:00 AM apparently is prime time to depart! The weather stayed wet and rainy all day and some of our passengers were held up because their plane couldn't land. They arrived quick enough and we left only about 20 minutes behind schedule. We learned that the tides in Ketchikan have about a 20 foot difference between low and high. Pretty huge, though because of the way glaciers carved out the fjords some of the channels are as deep as 1500 feet. We were in one of those that day.

Photos Coming

2008-08-15T04:56:00.000-04:00

I've got loads of photos to share, but the wireless connection here isn't so great. It takes forever to load them. The few that are here came from my iPhone and that poor thing would keel over if I took 300 photos from it! I'll get the pictures up as soon as I can!

A Little Bit Crabby

2008-08-15T04:50:00.000-04:00

Thursday, August 14, 2008
Ketchikan AK
Arrived 7:00 AM

We pulled into port about 6:45 or so, a little earlier than planned. Ketchikan is just beautiful. Everything we've seen has been beautiful and each port different. Our stateroom is on the starboard side so in this port we're facing away from the town. Kinda nice here; the bay serves as waterway and floatplane taxi-way. We watched several floatplanes take off and land while we ate breakfast. Adrianne and I were the only ones with an excursioni today and left the ship at 8:00 to meet our group. We were headed on a crabbing expedition. About 29 of us headed out of town to the George Inlet Lodge where we met our guide and captain and entered the misty fjords of the Tongass rain forest. We travelled about 6 miles to the estuary where Captain Sinkie (really) had baited the crab traps earlier in the morning (3:45 AM). Our guide, Paul, did an excellent job telling us about the area, the history, the economy before statehood and after, the primary source of income (salmon fishing and canning) and eventually we passed the Libby Cannery. He asked, "who remembers the Libby jingle?" Guess who did? Yep, to their delight I did. Do you? After arriving in this quiet little inlet in waters that were approximately 50' deep (we'd been in 1300' deep water) we ventured out into the rain to pull the first trap. Paul had to pull them; one has to have a fishing license to do so. He pulled, and pulled, and pulled and we were rewarded with a trap with about 8 crabs. He showed us the difference between male and female crabs, measured them, told us which would be keepers if we were really crabbing, which would be tossed back, we snapped pictures, and then he tossed the trap back in. On to the next one! Again, great success and a small flounder was also in the trap. Go figure. He quickly tossed that over the side while we examined the crabs from this haul. We headed back to the lodge where a wonderful meal awaited us, Dungeness crab, potatoes, salad, Alaskan Amber beer (or other beverages), and cheesecake with fresh Alaskan blueberries. Adrianne and I sat with a couple from Eastern Washington and had a great time visiting. Our table won the contest for the highest stack of empty crab legs (cleverly won when Jim, our dining companion, put the bowl of shells on his head, and stood on his chair, elevating the shells to a height of 75 inches). What a day! As I'm writing this I am SO EXCITED to see sun and whispers of blue sky!!! It has been gray and rainy for days. Ketchikan claims to be the rainiest place in the US, with an average of 13+ feet of rain a year. Yes, 13 feet of rain. It rained today and the locals were nearly dancing with glee that it was a slow, steady rain, not a downpour like the past 3 days. Back to the lodge...We finished our meal, trekked up the hill to the waiting bus, and headed back to Ketchikan just in time to make our ship before it left port. One tour group was late arriving; a floatplane tour was fogged in and couldn't return! The rest of the day was spent leisurely on board, we went to tea in the early afternoon, dad and I went to the movies, Adrianne and I went to the spa. I'm not sure I can return to my normal life in a week! It'll be a struggle. Tonight we're dining in the ship's 5 star restaurant, the Pinnacle Grill, adults only. Peter and Grace will stay on deck 10 in Club HAL while we wine and dine the night away. Or at least until the Lido Deck Chocolate Extraveganza that runs from 10 - 11:30 PM. Chocolate everything, or so they say. I'll let you know! Tomorrow is our last port, Victoria. We'll sail most of the day, arriving at 6:30 PM. No excursion planned there, we'll probably just hop off and wander around. It's supposed to be sunny and quite warm.

Master Chefs at Work

2008-08-15T04:49:00.000-04:00

Depart Sitka 5:00 PM
Wednesday Night August 13, 2008

Tonight was the Master Chef's Dinner, the farewell dinner from the chefs, dining room staff, and bar staff. It was great! We had late reservations and were seated next to a window where we could see the rolling sea. Yippy! Actually, Wednesday's seas were not nearly as bad as Tuesday's and didn't last nearly as long. Once we hit the Inside Passage the seas calmed noticeably. Back to dinner. The head chef and his crew prepared a fabulous dinner for us and it included entertainment! We met in the Ocean Bar for drinks (the waiter greeted Peter with "your usual 'not-a-cosmo' Master Cohen?" to which he grinned from ear to ear. The rest of us, save Grace, had something a bit stronger! We caught up, discussed our day, then made our way to the dining room. The wait staff were in their dress whites. We were escorted to our table (see above) and were given a quick explanation of how the evening would proceed. We also donned gorgeous white chefs hats. Such fun! Trina and Adrianne tried to get out of it claiming either one's head was too large for the paper hat or one might mess up her coiffed hair, but we didn't buy it. Neither did our waiter or the ship's photographer. Soon enough everyone was in a hat. We were served a delicious amuse bouche (mushroom pate in pastry), a delicious salad of mixed greens gently stuffed into a chilled tomato, and then the starter and entree of our choice. Wine was poured, Grace feasted on her favorite chicken nuggets and fries, the lobster bisque was superb, and our wait staff entertained us along the way with song and dance. It was quite festive. For dessert we had Baked Alaska, of course! It was very tasty. Toward 10:30 we wandered our separate ways; dad, Adrianne and I hit the nightclub and caught the last of the resident comedian's show, then the entirety of the staff show. The ship's staff is primarily Filipino and they put on a very nice, and often hysterical show. We laughed until we cried! By midnight, the ship was sailing smoothly, we headed off to our cabins, and slept soundly.

Ketchikan

2008-08-14T16:27:00.000-04:00

From our ship looking towards the dock in Ketchikan. The Golden Princess, who has been behind, or sometimes ahead of us this week, is in front of our ship. She's a HUGE vessel. Much larger than ours. I can't quite fathom it. Our day in Ketchikan was great even with rain all day long. The locals told us that we were quite fortunate; the previous 2 days had been horribly stormy with high winds, heavy rain, and swells that kept all excursion boats and floatplanes in. Bummer. The temperature was about 61 during the time we were there, which is pretty normal for this time of year. It rained steadily but not hard most of the time we were there.

A Little Twisted!

2008-08-14T12:07:00.000-04:00

Adrianne in Juneau at The Twisted Fish getting ready to enjoy an Alaskan Amber. Yum. Very good after a hard day spent whale watching and glacier trekking.

Sizzling Sitka Wednesday, August 12, 2008

2008-08-13T21:01:00.000-04:00

Ok, Sitka isn't sizzling! It's quite chilly here and today it's been raining off and on all day.
We had an early excursion today, Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest. It's funny, we leave the big
boat, to board a little boat! Sitka is situated in such a way that we must be tendered into
port. The ship, and one of its sister ships just hangs out in the bay. We'd all decided to do
this excursion together so we gathered in the appointed lounge, were tagged and then
boarded our excursion boat. We traveled thru the waters of Sitka's bay and eventually
spotted a bunch of harbor seals hanging out on some rocks. Huge animals. Next came a couple
of islands and dozens, literally, of bald eagles. The salmon are running here too, and at this
point were jumping out of the water. The eagles sit nad watch and at the appropriate moment
nature takes over and they swoop in for the kill and feast. We also saw several rafts of sea
otters, some deer, more fish, jelly fish (yes, really), humpback whales, and several water
fowl. The rain continued off and on but that didn't keep us off the top deck or from
watching with great gusto! After the wildlife we went into Sitka, visited the Russian
Orthodox church, grabbed some lunch, and did a little window shopping. Back on the boat
now, when we'll leave at 4:30 towards Ketchican. We have the Master Chef's dinner tonight
which is sort of like the farewall dinner. Friday we're in port in Victoria (a late stop, 6:00 -
midnight), and tomorrow is a formal night so I guess that explains tonight as the farewell
dinner. Let's hope tonight's voyage is a bit calmer too!

Depart Sitka 5:00 PMArrive Ketchikan 7:00 AM Thursday

Our captain just informed us that once we're back out in the ocean we have 30 - 40 knot winds to look forward to as well as sea swells. Whooo hooo. He also says that once we're able to get back on the inside passage the seas will calm down. Let's hope. He's putting out the stabilizers and we're on our way out of Sitka. Thank goodness for Dramamine....

Rock the Boat, Don't Rock the Boat Baby...

2008-08-13T21:00:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I know, I'm using too many song titles as my blog titles. Oh well.

Once we returned to the Gulf of Alaska the winds, rain and waves picked up considerably. I
didn't care too much for it! We had gale force winds, and rough seas (3 - 4 meters or 12 - 18
feet), rain, and lots and lots of rocking. This went on all night. Our room is up front and we
felt a lot of the rocking and dropping and tilting. Ick. I do think the acupuncture I'd had the
night before helped some, but naturally I was nervous and anxious which didn't help how I
was feeling. Adrianne and I met dad and Trina for dinner (Meg, Peter and Grace were
quaranteened) and Dick was napping. We ate, which did help, and heard from many crew
members that this was nothing, and perfectly normal. Apparently the trip from the Hubbard
Glacier to Sitka is always rough. I found that I had to NOT look outside and of course the
lower down deck we went the less we felt the movement of the ship. Dick joined us at dinner,
but didn't eat, and with tea, ginger ale, some solid food, and an hysterical waiter, we were all
feeling fine. A and I went off to our room around 10 PM, and the rocking picked up. Thanks
to a delightful little sleep aid, I was able to sleep. Apparently the rocking and rolling kept
up thru the night making Adrianne thinking she's have to leave the room and go to the 2nd
floor to feel less movement. I woke about 6:30 AM as we were arriving in Sitka and the
water was calm. We heard the anchor drop (noisy but no splash), Our ship's cruise director
JT, not Julie, came on the loudspeaker and announced our arrival in Sitka. Whew.

Baby It's Cold Outside! Hubbard Glacier

2008-08-13T20:58:00.000-04:00

It gets light about 4:30 AM so we wake pretty early. Today we woke this morning, about
7:00 AM, got up, dressed, and walked around the promenade deck for 30 minutes or so. Dad
and Peter joined us for breakfast on the Lido deck. As we entered the Gulf of Alaska and
Yukatet Bay, the landscape off the starboard side became more and more beautiful. The
mountains were sharper, less green, and had lots of snow in their high peaks. The sea was
pretty calm and occasionally we'd see bits and pieces of ice float by. We entered the
Yukatet Bay around 10:00 AM, the temperature outside stayed a surprising 60 degrees, but
the wind picked up and was quite brisk. By 10:30 we were up on the Observation Deck,
looking at the landscape and the water, and hoping for a glimpse of the Hubbard Glacier. It's
pretty interesting to me; at this point, the mountains closest to us are very green, very
sharp, not rounded. They do have snow in their peaks and folds, but are not covered. There
are some rocky spots as well, and the shoreline is small, but defined. The water in the bay
began to change color too going from the dark greenish color of the ocean to a lighter, more
blue-green color with is from the glacier. There is a definite line between ocean water and
glaciar water. It's pretty cool. We were all on deck, bundled up, sipping bloody Marys, or
hot chocolate, or spiked coffees. Very civilized. Soon the glacier was spotted. It's huge. Six
miles long, blue and white, with various other colors running thru it. At noon we were served
split pea soup on deck which was delicious and warm. This apparently is a Dutch tradition. It
took us quite some time to pick our way into the water space to get there, but it was well
worth it. We got within a quarter mile of the glacier and saw it calve several times. There
was constant cracking and popping, and sharp pops almost constantly. Then, giant chunks
would break off, crash into the sea, and the noise was thunderous. Really! Again, very cool!
The colors were great and at one point we could see the curve of the glacier up the mountain.
We stayed on Dick and Trina's verandah for an hour or so as we navigated in front of the
glacier. The captain turned the boat so the other (port) side could see and we broke for
lunch. Apparently so did everyone else! The dining room was packed and finding tables and
food was a bit difficult. Poor little Grace was starting to feel bad (probably from over
indulging on deck with soup, mock-tails, hot chocolate, coffee, and her large breakfast). Meg
and Grace had to make a quick trip to the ship's doctor for an anti-nausea drug and Grace
was asked to stay in her stateroom for 24 hours. We left the glacier at 3:00 PM, traveling
out the way we came in. At one point we saw 2 bears on the shore! The bay and sea were
quite calm until about 5:00 PM then the winds picked up, the waves picked up, and the ship's
roll started.

Ship's Conditions Tuesday August 12, 2008

2008-08-13T20:56:00.000-04:00

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Hubbard Glacier
Arrived 10:00 AM Departed 3:00 PM
Ship conditions - Seas calm, rippled, no waves (yet)
Ship's position is 59 54.45' N 139 37.62' W
Air temperature 60.9 degrees
barometer steady
sea temperature 46.4 F, Pools holding steady at 80! Lots of ice in the water (not the pool water)
Winds from the east
Yakutat Bay into Gulf of Alaska towards Sitka (arriving there in the morning
Currently 3:07 PM

Pins and Needles

2008-08-13T20:52:00.000-04:00

Monday August 11, 2008
8:30 PM

Tonight I had my first acupuncture treatment! I'm feeling the motion of the boat a lot and
sadly motion bothers me. Saturday's evening at sea was not pleasant for me so I decided to
try acupuncture. Good news, it seems to work! It was a very restful and relaxing experience.
The acupuncturist was quite good and very gentle. I have 2 more sessions scheduled! Can't
wait!!

Monday, August 11, 2008 Juneau Alaska

2008-08-13T20:46:00.000-04:00

Adrianne and I woke about 7:00 AM and were surrounded by gorgeous scenary. The seas
were calm and the mountains in the distance were snow-capped. Sometime around 9:00, 9:30
our ship was boarded by a pilot to guide us into Juneau. The ship was cleared for entry by
the port authority and we slowly made our way into port. Still took about 30 minutes to get
to the port, and dock and it was probably 10:00 AM before we were ready to disembark.
Once there Adrianne and I left the ship, via the A level foreward gangway, and headed out
on our Mendenhall Glacier & Whale Watching Quest! Good fun. Immediately off the boat we
saw the first of many bald eagles. There are several in Juneau. We boarded buses and drove
through the city of Juneau with a lively guide at the wheel. He relayed all kinds of Alaska
and Juneau trivia, including pointing out the high school where the Duke great Carlos Boozer
went to school. We didn't care so much! Juneau is very pretty, lots of green, lots of flowers
in bloom, lots of water, and mountains all around. Once at the docks for the whale watching
we boarded a large catamaran, settled in and headed out. Along the way our guide gave great
tips on spotting whales and within 20 minutes or less we saw the first blows, in a group of 3.
Sure enough, 3 humpback whales rose from the water, their backs arching and then their
tails sliding beautifully into the water. We had whales all around us! We spotted between 18
- 24 humpback whales during the morning. At one point we saw some calves swimming with
their mothers. One of the whales breeched not far from our boat (breeching is when they
come up, turn, and splash back down. Very cool. Most of the whales came out of the water
pretty fully allowing us a chance to see their backs and then their tails. Very, very nice. We
continued along (the boats are allowed to stay with a group of animals for only 30 minutes
and then they must move on and can do nothing that appears to be herding the animals). The
boat moved on and we came across a group of sea lions hanging out on a bouy. The bouy
apparenly is prime real estate and those in the water scramble and fight to get up top. While
we were there we saw two little guys (probably not little if we'd been close) fighting their
way up, with no care if they knocked others off! From there we traveled a bit farther and
then made our way back. We continued to see whales all along the way; at one point a single
humpback rose right next to our boat. Our guide was so excited! We viewed a couple of
different feeding habits, that don't occur very often and she was SO happy to have been
able to witness this and explain it to us. One is lunge feeding where the whales lunge together
under water bringing the crill and fish and other things they eat towards the top of the
water then they all swoosh in together to feed. The other is bubble feeding and I don't
remember what this is! One our way back to the docks we came across 3 pods of Orcas. This
is very rare for these waters in Juneau. Each pod had between 5 and 7 whales in it, so
approximately 15 Orca whales were spotted. There was a huge male, with huge dorsal fin, who
was all over the place. And, there were two calves who were breeching and playing along. We
made it back to the docks, boarded our busses and then headed about 7 miles to the
Mendenhall Glacier. By this time it was raining in Juneau, but no problem. The glacier was
amazing. Although we were not able to get very close the views were spectacular. The park
rangers were scooping out bits of glacial ice from the lake for close up views! The water was
quite cold, no swimming! Adrianne and I took several photos before moving inside the visitors
center. Oh! and before getting to the glacier we crossed a stream where we saw the sockeye
(red) salmon running. These fish are huge, and brilliantly red! There was a half eaten one off
on the shore; a quiet reminder that bears are very close by in the neighborhood. We'd been
told often that we might come across one, or two, and warned what to do should we see one.
In fact, 2 days before a woman had been mauled in the park because when she came across
one she dropped into a fetal position, which is NOT what you're supposed to do. After the
glacier we went back to town, hopped off our bus (our driver was becoming too chatty at
this time), and had an early dinner at The Twisted Fish. Very good. We did some shopping,
then headed back to the boat. The rest of the evening was quite; A and I went to the spa
pools and saunas, showered, and just hung out. Ah! And I had my first acupunture treatment.
More on that later.

Sleepy Sunday

2008-08-11T02:22:00.000-04:00

Sunday, August 10

Adrianne and I woke at 9:00 to room service. Breakfast on the verandah! It was lovely. Here's a picture looking down from our verandah. It's
quite cold here, the daytime highs barely reach 60 and there's a constant wind. We had our
breakfast then went for a walk along the Promenade deck with granddad. It's a great walk, all the way around the ship, seeing, occasionally, land on the starboard side, the Pacific on
the port side. Still the Golden Princess stays behind us, sometimes a bit more westernly,
other times directly behind. Whales were spotted at breakfast. We also saw either dolphins or porpoises. The sea is very calm today, very smooth and glass like.

Trina, Adrianne and I played Bingo earlier today. It was great fun! There were some pretty
nice cash prizes too but unfortunately we didn't win. After Bingo, it was lunch time, then nap
time, then more walking, pilates, the hydrotherapy pool and saunas, and finally time to dress
for dinner. Tonight was the first of 2 formal nights. We clean up pretty well.

Mid afternoon we came to Queen Charlotte Islands. They are very beautiful. They're quite
green and have very sharp features; they are not gentle, rolling mountains like those in NC,
and they are certainly not sharp and rocky like our Rocky Mountains. Perhaps sheer is a
better word to describe? At one point along the way I could see snow on some of the higher
peaks. I spent some time just sitting on the verandah, watching the sea go by. Very relaxing.
Dinner was very nice; again we had a great table with a stunning view and afterwards we
went to the Captain's toast, where we were introduced, en masse, to a few of the officers,
the captain, and heard a bit more about our ports of call, how to leave and re-enter the ship,
when we'll leave and so on.

A stingray awaited us when we arrived in our room!

Tomorrow, decent weather is predicted, and we're in Juneau. Adrianne and I will be hiking
along the Mendenhall Glacier and then go on a whale watching expedition. Fun!

Ship and Sea information

2008-08-11T02:16:00.000-04:00

As of 3:00 PM Pacific Time, our ship's coordinaters are:

53 26 75 N
131 55 41 W

Next Sunrise: 5:34 AM

Next Sunset: 9:37 PM

Outside air temperature 60
Sea temp 46
Pool temp 80

Seas are calm - We're just west of Queen Charlotte Islands
Wind is from south-east

401 Nautical Miles from Juneau
Travelled 476 Nautical miles already
Will be in Juneau at 10:30 AM Monday morning.

We gain an hour tonight; clocks and watches are set back

Leaving Seattle

2008-08-11T02:14:00.000-04:00

Saturday - August 9, 2008Up early, showered, had breakfast at the hotel in Seattle, then a quick cab ride to the ship's terminal. We met 2 couples who were checking in as I was checking out and they had just disembarked from the ms Oosterdam. They said we would not be disappointed, that it was a great cruise.

At the ship's terminal we saw just how huge our ship is. Remember, we're all first time
cruisers except for Adrianne. Peter, riding with me and A, was overwhelmed! (So was I!). We
very quickly go thru the check in process, and then about 11:30 AM boarded the ship. Yep,
we walked up a gangplank! We were greated by the ship's staff, directed to a place to leave
our carry-on bags, then headed to the Lido deck and lunch. The buffet was very nice; too
many selections. We sat starboard side (right, right?), and watched the bustling dock
activity as our luggage was loaded, as well ad various other items. Our rooms were ready at
1:30 and after that announcement was made we each headed off on our own to gather luggage,
check out the rooms, unpack and see various parts of the ship. Adrianne and I did a quick
tour of the spa and purchased 2 week long passes to their hydrotherapy mineral pools,
thermal suite (wonderfuly warmed creamic chairs), and 3 different saunas. After the tour of
the spa and fitness center (had to sign up for those pilates classes too) we made it to our
room. It's really beautiful. Very spacious, on the 6th floor, full bath, tons of storage space,
and perhaps best of all, the verandah. It's fabublous! We have a small one, but it's large
enough for the two of us to sit, view the sea adn the passing landscape, and have breakfast,
which is what we did on Sunday!

After unpacking, we went thru the lifevest /lifeboat drill. Very interesting. They still
require that women and children are up front, and, in the event of a real emergency, we'd be
the first to board the lifeboats. Even though the men were squished to the back the drill
instructors assured us that the lifeboats would hold over 2000 people, much more than the
occupancy of the boat, sans crew though. The drill only lasted about 20 minutes. The biggest
challenge appeared to be getting people to be quiet so they could call roll. There were two
tiny old ladies in front of me and they chattered constantly! They also couldn't remember
their room number so they couldn't answer the roll call! It started to rain a bit at one point,
just a tiny sprinkle, and these two little ladies nearly had a fit! They exclaimed they were
getting wet, their hair was getting wet, they had to get in! And then they pulled out their
salvation, a little foldup rain bonnet. Yep. Haven't seen one of those in years since Nana
pulled one out of her pocketbook 20 years ago!

Lifevest/boat drill over, we went back to our rooms, stowed the lifevests, and headed back
to the Lido deck to await departure. We left right on time, and moved smoothly away from
the dock into the waters of the Puget Sound. The scenary was beautiful, the city's skyline
lovely and there was great excitement from our passengers and the ones on the ship next in
line to leave. We partied on the Lido Deck and Observation deck for some time. The rain
returned and the roof over the Lido pool closed keeping us nice and dry. We had drinks,
snacks, listened to music, and just enjoyed ourselves until we decided a bit of a rest was in
order.

Dinner Saturday was at 7:30 PM, in the main dining room, the Vista Dining room. We had a
great view out the back of the ship and continued to see the Golden Princess trailing us.
After dinner we adjourned to the Ocean Lounge for drinks and music. Grace had spent the
evening at Club HAL at a sail away party for youngsters. She had a blast! And Peter was
most pleased with his "not a Cosmo" mocktail. Off to bed by midnight. The sea was pretty
active Saturday night making me not terribly comfortable, but 30 minutes on the verandah
and a couple of Dramamine later I was better and eventually fell asleep.

Lunch on the Lido Deck

2008-08-09T15:27:00.000-04:00

We're going on a cruise!!!

2008-08-09T14:11:00.000-04:00

We're checked in, just waiting to board.

Adrianne our tour guide

2008-08-09T14:04:00.000-04:00

Partly Cloudy

2008-08-09T12:34:00.000-04:00

Good morning! It's Saturday, Aug. 9 and we're just about ready to leave the hotel. Adrianne and I have been up since 6:30 AM; chalk it up to excitement. We've repacked, and managed to reduce my holdings to one, count it, ONE suitcase and a laptop case. (Dick and Trina are going unplugged; Adrianne and I are definitely electronics heavy on this one!). We're staying at The Mayflower Park hotel in Seattle, near the Space Needle, and flanked by Macy's and Nordstrom. And a Starbucks of course. The hotel is great, very nice, an older place, well kept, with loads of charm. The best part? We're in a queen delux (did I mention my tiara) with 2 queen beds, and 2 full bathrooms. A and I are in heaven. Seriously. We met with Dick and Trina last night, had drinks and tapas in the hotel's restaurant, did some walking, caught up, planned our next vacation (Spain '09) and a mini to Vegas, and then parted ways after passing out the "Yes, we're now THAT family traveling together in matching t-shirts." Trina was both amazed and slightly horrified. We'll wear them today, not stand out as much as some, probably more than others, and are all so excited we don't really care! We're leaving at 10:15 for the ship, will board as soon as possible, find the Lido deck and Isaac our bartender, and with drink in hand, watch the Seattle skyline until our 4:00 PM departure. Giddy? Only slightly. More anon.

K & A at the Space Needle - a little travel worn

2008-08-09T02:36:00.000-04:00

Kathy and Dick

2008-08-09T02:34:00.000-04:00

Making a serious dinner decision no doubt.

Lake Washington

2008-08-09T02:33:00.000-04:00

Seattle's waterfront

2008-08-09T02:32:00.000-04:00

View from the top

2008-08-09T02:24:00.001-04:00

The lovely city of Seattle from the Space Needle. The trip west was quite good. My family would laugh knowing that my recollection of anything after handing off my ticket to the kind airline folks is zero. I'm medicated when I fly. I find my seat, swig some water, don the eyemask and earplugs, and before takeoff I'm out. It's the best way. We flew from RDU to Phoenix, then after a short layover from Phoenix to Seattle. Adrianne tells me the flights were good except for the screaming children behind her. Ick. We arrived in Seattle around 1:00 PM, easily caught cabs to our hotel, checked in, found some lunch, then headed off to the Space Needle. What a great day and a wonderful view. We spent probably 2 hours there viewing the city, the water, and the various exhibits, then walked back to the hotel. Dick and Trina joined us at 7:30 for dinner. We had a wonderful meal, lots of little small plates of delicious food, some nice drinks and wine, lucious chocolate cake and after dinner drinks, then walked with D & T to their hotel about 6 blocks away. Back in the hotel now, and ready for a little sleep. We're meeting at 11 in the morning to board the ship, then we're off!

Walt would be horrified...

2008-08-08T00:05:00.000-04:00

Walt, my co-worker and next door cubemate, travels light. He once traveled to the South Pacific to visit his son, who was in the Peace Corps at the time, and took one bag. For 3 weeks. And brought back stuff. He's probably twitching now just looking at the 3 suitcases I have for a 2 week trip with guaranteed washer & dryer availability. Hey Walt! I packed 4 pair of shoes!!

2008-08-08T00:01:00.000-04:00

Less than 24 hours and counting!

2008-08-07T11:26:00.000-04:00

It's getting close. I'm packed and ready to go. Oh, so ready to go. Still have a few hours left before we arrive at the airport (we'll be there at 6:00 AM sharp), and of course there's the check-in, security process to go through. Today, Thursday, there will be last minute errands, lunch, a few last things at home, and then gather things up to go! I'm very, very excited. I think we all are!

More later...

Finally on board, or going back on my word?

2008-08-05T11:06:00.000-04:00

I'm either finally getting on-board with the blogging thing, or I'm going back on my word when I've said I have no time to blog! Which is it? Does it really matter?

Friday my family and I leave for Alaska. We're going to celebrate our dad's 75th birthday, albeit a smidge early. His actual birthday is in November but I think the only sailing vessels in Alaskan waters in November are best viewed on Discovery's Deadliest Catch. Not our style. Who's going? Dad (Richard), me, Dick, Trina, Adrianne, Meg, Peter and Grace. We've traveled together before, we do it well, we'll have a ball!

I'll be away for two weeks, one on a wonderful cruise along Alaska's Inside Passage, and the second visiting one of my favorite cities, San Francisco. What better way to keep up with my travels, experiences, and thoughts?

Today is Tuesday, August 5, and according to my Countdown to Seattle tracker it's 2 days, 8 hours, and 47 minutes until we depart for Seattle. We'll spend one day (or a part of one) in Seattle then board our ship for Alaska.

Excited? Yep, just a little bit!

Tonight the packing begins, at lease somewhat. Maybe I'll start with something easy like those pesky toiletries that have to be stashed away, or the heavier, layering clothing, or shoes.

Stay tuned. More to come...