Last Day at Sea

Today is our last full day on the Diamond Princess. We are currently sailing down the B.C. coast. We have to do the awful task of trying to pack all the clothes that we have. As usual we brought too much although we managed to wear just about everything. It is a full day of activities but as expected most are a repeat of the things that we did on the Pacific crossing. We have just finished a good line dancing session where there was less talk and more movement. We intend to meet with our China tour group this afternoon but we only need to go for half the time since we missed half the tour. I will upload photos once we are back in Windsor and have one final post at that time.
It has been fun but after 28 days away, it is time to go home.

Last Stop Before Vancouver

With Table Mates

Our last stop today before sailing for Vancouver was Ketchikan. Another interesting town filled with tourist shops. There were only 3 other ships here when we arrived mid morning. They have 2 wonderful walking tours well planned and described. We wanted to see the local sites and this was certainly a way of doing that. It included the downtown area with stops at a number of totem poles that are around the city. It also passed a marina where we were fortunate enough to see a Bald Eagle land on the mast of a small boat. We have

been wanting to see eagles for a few days and this one seemed to appear right on cue. A visit to the former red light district (now they fleece you for the souvenirs) and a few minutes spent viewing a seal in the local stream completed the morning.
We continued to wander down to the fish packing plant where "You can see 20-30 eagles all the time. Sure; we walked almost clear out of town and never found the birds although we passed the plant twice. By that time it was afternoon so we signed ourselves in to the Moose Lodge (we are now members I think) so we could have a beer where the locals drink. We had the best fish lunch and fries ever. The beer was very reasonable as well. Now we are back and preparing for our last day at sea tomorrow before arriving in Vancouver.

Roaming Jumeau - Capital of Alaska

Relaxing At Sea

We spent the day in Juneau Alaska, exploring the town. Being the state capital it had plenty to see. We had decided before we left that it would be a day of getting to know the town. Our first stop was the state museum which featured a look at the various cultural groups that were native to Alaska. We happened upon a guided tour of the exhibits which make the whole experience a lot more enjoyable. The exhibit also included the Russian and finally the American ownership of the area. We spent a bit of time there.
We wanted to find Governor Pallin's house and by asking a local person we found that we could take an elevator up 8 stories to get to the higher level of town. We did that by taking the elevator in the state building. It saved plenty of steps in a city that has plenty of up slope. We did find the mansion (complete with children's toys in the back yard) and took the required photos. Then we wandered further up the hill so we could tour the old Russian Orthodox church which was at the far end of town. By then it was local beer time. The bartender, an ex-marine answered some of the things we wanted to know while we tried the local beer . Then it was wander back time, mixing with the passengers of the other ships. In all there were 5 ships were in. The Golden Princess was alongside when we arrived in the morning and by afternoon the Carnival ship had sailed and the Star Princess took its place. Obviously the town was packed with people wanting to buy the "Made in China" or "Real Alaska" things.
We are really enjoying the Alaska portion of the trip. The stops are much like the Caribbean with the push on shopping with the key difference being that the mountains and scenery substitute for the warmth. Here you have a greater variety of things to see or do.

A Day in Skagway

We had a very nice tour of the Skagway area. It was the gateway to the Yukon gold fields and we opted to do a whole day tour. We were gone from the ship at just after 8 in the morning, returning around 5 in the afternoon.
 

The first part of the day was spend on a bus travelling the highway over the pass. It was a

The Train!

wonderful trip. The bus driver guide was a non stop source of information. The weather was again clear blue skies and the remarks about the weather being so nice were heard again. We made numerous stops along the way, including the one at the Canadian customs as we entered first B.C. but eventually ended in the Yukon. The lakes were just melting and the mountains being reflected in the clear calm waters were picture perfect. We carried on to Caribou Crossing for a lunch and museum stop, then made our way back to Carcross. It is famous in Yukon history as the starting point for the gold rushers. After carrying the 2000 pounds of supplies required by the Mounted Police, they built rafts for the 600 mile journey to the gold fields. Looking and learning at what they endured can only make one wonder.
   We then took the bus back to the train ride down the mountain and again the sense of what they endured was overwhelming. The advice that people gave us about taking the train was great. In town we visited the Red Dog Saloon for a beer. A walk around town ended the day.
I should add a word about the Captain of the Diamond Princess. His name is Captain Dino Sagani and he is probably the most personable of all the Captains we have seen. He gives full reports and has a great sense of humour.

A Day in Glacier Bay

We are just heading out of Glacier Bay after spending the whole day
here. The weather was absolutely perfect with not a cloud in the sky. We had plenty of time at the head of the bay and did manage to see some calving but most were small. Nothing big and beautiful. However since we were there for an extended period of time, I did manage to try a number of different settings on my camera. Now I need to compare the results.
On the way in this morning we did encounter more otters. Sea lions were basking in the sunlight and as we enjoyed of waffle the whales were active. We saw a number of them and hope to see more in the next few hours. Princess did not arrange any to be up close and personal for the passengers. We are on a full day tour tomorrow in Skagway. Time for another meal!

Whittier and College Fiord

We ended our stay in Whittier and are just leaving the College Fiord area. Whittier proved to be as small as promised. It took about 3 hours to see everything and that included the walk to the train/car tunnel that connects it with Anchorage. A sign in the town says" Last stop for the Unemployable". That is probably true. There is very little in the town but it is the start point for a number of boat tours. Cruise buses in town yesterday included Holland America. Royal Caribbean as well as Princess. We did visit the old army barracks that are now it total disrepair. The only real pub in town was closed. However, it was a beautiful sunny day and a great chance to walk after the extended sea time.
      This morning we entered College fiord at 6 am. The weather was bright and sunny. The pilot remarked that he had never seen it so clear. They probably say that all the time. In any case we have lots of pictures and many memories of the otters that frequent the area. We have not encountered anything bigger yet but they keep saying whales are in the area.
We picked up about 1200 people yesterday and had around 600 leave. The ship is now at 2200 with almost 300 children aboard. On the crossing we had 11!