Almost home

 On Monday we disembarked (don't you love long words)? We got off our ship, made it to the Vancouver airport and, to our delight, were able to get an earlier flight to our next destination - Seattle. We were very, very pleased that we could go through customs while still in the Vancouver airport. Big signs saying WELCOME TO THE USA guided us easily and quickly through the process. So quickly in fact that we were then able to get the earlier flight to Seattle, discover after landing that the plane we had just gotten off would be boarding in a half hour to fly to Spokane, our ultimate destination. We had expected to arrive in Spokane by 11:30pm, instead arrived at 7pm to be greeted at the airport by my west coast brother and sister-in-law. And this brings me to the almost home title of this blog. My spouse and I won't actually be home til early Saturday morning, but right now I am at the one place in the world where I feel most at home except for my own home. The unique and very comfortable house and rolling rural vistas in all directions make this an excellent place to be, but it's the family love that makes it feel like home.

On dry land...

 So here we are at the end of our lovely cruise, on dry land again. We have followed all the steps, which, by the way, has involved lots and lots of steps. We have identified our luggage which is now on the way to the Vancouver airport and, in an hour, we will board a bus to follow it there. From there we will fly to Seattle then on to Spokane. 

When we flew to Tokyo at the beginning of this odyssey it was a 13 hour flight from Chicago. Now we are in Vancouver, much closer to our goal, playing the waiting game. And speaking of games this city is decorated with soccer balls. Evidently there will be some big games here later this week.

Meanwhile we are in a comfy hotel dining room waiting for our bus. Passing the time eating cookies and drinking coffee. We must keep our strength up. 

The last night

 Well, here we are. My Wonder Spouse and I are relaxing on our balcony of our state room watching the gently rippling water as the sun sets. It has been a lovely long cruise. I've experienced two big accomplishments. 

The first is stuffing everything I own into my big suitcase and my carry on with a little overflow into my spouse's carry on. He's very understanding.

Second, I think I really saw a whale, and about time. This is my last chance. I saw the long dark shape and the dorsal fin. Of course no picture, there's never time for that. But I feel confident about what I saw and I am content. 

Next stop Vancouver, then Spokane. No more cruising til next time. 

Bears, glaciers and zip lines

 Well no bear sightings yet but we have been warned repeatedly not to carry food with us as we hike. Yesterday was not a problem because our excursion was by catamaran. We sailed through lots of ice chunks to get close to Hubbard glacier. So blue and beautiful. We even drank a Margarita made with glacier ice. The hot chocolate we were given when we got back to our ship was much better. When we get home I will be able to post pictures with my blogs so will play photo catch up then. 

Today we actually ended up doing quite a bit of hiking. We rode a gondola to the top of a mountain, then hiked a long way to the zip line site. So much fun but then another mile plus hike from the zip line touch down to the shore to get a tender back to the ship. The zip line ride was fun but a little chilly compared to our zip ride in the Caribbean. But really fun. I will do it again the next chance I have. 

If you haven't tried it you really should. The zip lining that is, not the glacier Margherita. I should mention we are at Hoonah and Icy Strait Point today.

Different aspects of Alaska

 Yesterday in Homer we  visited the Pratt Museum and today in Seward we visited the Alaska Sea Life Center. We are surrounded by snow capped mountains and today was gloriously sunny so we did enjoy some time in the great outdoors. However the real treats were indoors. 

I am not a big fan of taxidermy but the Pratt did have some excellent stuffed animals including a 10 feet tall grizzly bear. I do not want to meet the real thing. They also had an excellent display of small sculptures made from wood and folded paper and a lovely large quilted wall hanging featuring purple moose and other fanciful creatures. 

Today at the Sea Life Center things got livelier (pun intended). We walked through an amazing display of huge aquariums featuring salmon and sea lions, star fish and anemone, and so much more. Some of the huge tanks were open to the sky. We were looking at one from the underwater level when a duck dived in and way down to the bottom of the tank. I did not know that ducks would dive so deep or stay underwater so long.  

I highly recommend both of these stops the next time you're in Alaska. 

A tour to remember...

 Today we docked in Kodiak, Alaska. As usual, my spouse and I signed up for the included easy tour. It was a misleading description. Our easy walking tour through downtown Kodiak turned into a three hour hike in misty cold rain (45 degrees) up and down sloping streets, along creaking piers with a cold wind in our faces most of the time. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, doesn't it? I have never been more miserably cold on a tour. 

I have also never been so absolutely enthralled by a tour guide. Through the entire tour she told us about fascinating events that had happened in the history of Kodiak. She was a fountain of information about the ups and downs of the fishing industry, earthquakes, tsunamis, bears, ship wrecks, survival suits and so much more. 

We ended the tour at a small, lovely Russian Orthodox cathedral, founded in the early 1700s, where the priest very graciously answered our questions and showed us around. 

When you  visit Kodiak, and you really should, be sure you get Ani Thomas as your guide. Regardless of the weather, you won't be disappointed. Check out kodiakani@gmail.com.

Logical activities

 Today is our fifth day at sea with no sight of land or whales, although we do keep looking. We've listened to several interesting lectures about sharks, bears, whales, salmon and much more. I really do enjoy these educational hours but sometimes a woman needs more. So, no surprise here, I booked some time at the salon for a shampoo, cut and blow dry. The shampoo alone took a half hour because it included a wonderful scalp massage. I'm very pleased with the haircut. Now back to watching for those elusive whales.