THE LAST SWIPE

Today was a day of just taking our time getting up and getting around.  We spent some time in the Atrium where Nancy participated in a couple of games.  She wasn't lucky enough at Ring Toss or the Target Ball game to win the coveted wine stopper that was the prize that she was aiming for.  But she had fun playing.

We tried Bingo today and should have avoided that!  We even bought more cards and split the cost, but we were unlucky at that game. We spent some time in the Explorers Lounge were we met Evelyn Douglas and played a trivia game.  We were smart at Trivia, but not quite smart enough.  It was nice spending time with her.  She and her friend had a reservation at Planks for dinner, but they decided not to go there as they had heard from others that it wasn't very good and we had been there earlier in the week and weren't impressed at all.  So the 5 of us had dinner together in the dining room.  It was a prime rib and baked potato dinner and it was really good.  All in all, the food wasn't a highlight on this trip.  None of it was bad...just didn't seem as good as years ago.  Some of the portions seemed quite small and the selection wasn't always what I was looking for.  With the different nationalities traveling, the menu has to appeal to all tastes and that is very understandable.  We certainly didn't starve and there was always one dish that was a easy selection.

After dinner, we went back to the casino to try our luck one last time.  Nancy made her way to watch another game show in the Explorers Lounge and Colleen and I...money in hand...went to the machine that I did fairly well at yesterday.  Someone was playing it!  So we waited for a bit and then went to the Railroad Riches slot machine.  Our very first spin and we doubled our money!  So of course we didn't just leave the machine we kept playing and after some time, we cashed out from our $40 investment, we left with $274.00.  What fun that was!

So we went to the front desk to pay off our account.  At least the only amount on it was the money we spent at Bingo.  So of the $300 I took to gamble with, I am bring bringing back $100.  I call that a win!  Cheap entertainment for 7 days at sea.

Now our bags are packed and put outside to be waiting for us on shore when we disembark tomorrow.  I am ready to be home.  It was a wonderful week with good friends and now back to life as I know it.

So I close the blog on this one and hope I can have another trip to add some more pages to the book I will eventually have printed from my journeys.  

Bye for now!

KETCHIKAN

Glad we don't have to tender today - there are sooooo many ships in port.  We counted 7! I am quite sure that I was never in Ketchikan when it has been so busy with tourists.  Every day they said is like this!   At times it was very hard just to navigate the streets.  Finding a coffee shop with space was difficult - but not impossible.  After shuffling down Creek Street...we found a coffee shop called Island Brew and had a pleasant latte and even got to pet a couple of friendly local dogs.

The quilt shop called Changing Tides, which was always a favourite over in the building called Salmon Landing, closed for good this year.  Sad - they still have an on line presence but other than a few Alaskan Fabrics in the corner of a nearby Yarn Shop it was slim pickins for anything quilty.

However....I FOUND MY $35.00 JACKET!  I don't leave Alaska without buying a jacket!  I thought after no jackets in Juneau that I would be disappointed.  I just had to be patient and wait until Ketchikan!  Nancy and Colleen bought one each too.  

Nancy found a moose to have her picture taken alongside.  I tried to encourage her to sit on it...didn't work.  Standing beside she said was just fine!  We saw the most beautiful red hydrangeas.  I wonder if it was the soil or a different variety.  Course I didn't take my own picture...but found this one on the internet that is a close idea of what we saw.

So after our last bit of shopping, it was back to the ship and start mentally preparing for the journey home.  

 

I had a wonderful drink in the afternoon called butterfly tea.  It was really pretty and a cool experience.  I had a glass which contained the drink and a smaller glass of pure lemon juice to pour in and then the magic happened.  I have really enjoyed trying some different drinks.  Nothing I would do at home at the prices they are...nor would I buy the liquour to make them myself.  It has been fun.  Colleen is amazes that I like the strong taste of any of the alcohols.  Good thing I limit myself to either Las Vegas or Cruise ship with package!  

So now we are at the last of our days with ports of call and just one more day at sea and then the disembarkation back in Vancouver.  Hmmm now where was the Gatsby Casino again?  

SCENIC CRUISING

Today was a very early start to get up and have a great view of the Endicott Arm and all the way to the Dawes Glacier.  Ok....so at the observation deck at 7:00 in the rain and the fog!  Not a great day for viewing much of anything.  However I was there.  

As we mosied along very slowly - I realized that one arm just like the other.  Previously I sailed down or up the Tracy Arm to the Grand Pacific the Marjorie Glaciers thinking that that itinerary was the best of all.  Now I realize that the Endicott Arm and the Dawes Glacier are quite lovely.  The Dawes Glacier has a similar white/blue look as Marjorie Glacier.  We didn't seem to get as close but it was there just the same.  We spun around so everyone had a chance to have a good look and then just as we were exiting the Endicott Arm...the sun was glorious!  Not our luck today.

Whales were in the the arm and we did see spouts and the back of the humpback.  Some lucky people on the other side of the ship saw one breaching.  I was happy to see what we did from the ship, but wow a breach would have been amazing!  Next time.

The rest of the day was spent trying our luck at Bingo.  Hah that was fun to do but no luck there.  We wandered around and then went back to the room to hang out there for a while.  Nancy had a really tough coughing spell, so we stayed in the room.  Nancy was very exhausted and did not want to go to dinner.  We ordered dinner to the room for her and Colleen and I went to the dining room.  

We were seated next to a couple from England and in talking to them, we realized we could help them with their transportation from the cruise ship dock to the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal.  They were going to use Uber or Taxi, however, there was an option through Viator Tours to get on a bus at Canada Place and then on the ferry and off at the Bus Terminal in Downtown Victoria.  I think overall this no hassle option would be a cheaper alternative that on an off Ubers and looking after luggage on the ferry.  Fingers crossed that it all works out for them

After that we tried to go to the Explorers Lounge but it was quite noisy so off we went to the casino.  We played a few games and finally settled in at one that kept us playing for the better part of one and a half hours and still walked away with our same money.  We will definitely look to try that one again.  This time when Nancy is able to join us!  It was entertaining!

So although this post is delayed in coming...I was able to remember what we did from 2 days ago.  Whew!

Ok onto the next day!  Talk to you in a minute!

SKAGWAY

What a beautiful morning here is Skagway.  It is so pretty when the sun is shining.  The mountains have snow and the blue sky just is such a  beautiful backdrop for everything!  Today we have to go to town with the tenders.  There was a landslide that has left the hillside quite unstable, so they are having us disembark from the sea side of the ship and taking us in on the little boats.  Always a zoo, but that is the way we are able to go ashore.

Of course once again I made a bee line to the little Quilt Shop called Quilt Alaska.  I was able to find some things to spend money on.  I bought a couple of laser cut kits that I will enjoy doing.  

Didn't know that they are having a shop up here in Alaska, so the one I bought is of a fox that Is the design for the quilt shop Quilt Alaska.  It was really nice!  The other one I bought is of a puffin - although it is unlikely that I will be seeing puffins this trip - but I have seen them on other occasions!

Colleen and Nancy found a place to sit while I shopped.  They were very patient with me.

Other than my spending spree, there was no other money left in Skagway.  Tomorrow my wallet will have a rest as we are having a scenic cruising day.  Going up the Endicott Arm and to the Dawes Glacier.  I am happy to have a day at sea after two port days.

This evening we can get to see sled dog puppies in the main atrium or as they call it on this ship - the Piazza.  Awkward time though .. it is from 6:00 to 6:45.  It appears that there is no room left to interact with the puppies.  However, with all the littles on this ship, I sure hope they are able to get up and personal with the pups.

After dinner we will have some drinks and have fun in the Explorers Lounge again.  There are usually enough games to keep us entertained until bed time.  So tomorrow we will be up early to take in a full day of scenic cruising before our next port day.  

Talk later.

JUNEAU

Juneau was lovely today!  Not raining so it was wonderful to walk around.  I really expected that we would have rainier days when looking ahead at the forecast, however we were fortunate that it stayed away during the time we were in town. 

I headed straight for the quilt shop, Changing Tides. There was nothing that I wanted to buy.  I must have everything.  Actually according some people, I have too much!  I don't think that is possible.  Tomorrow I will try again in Skagway.  There has to be something I need.  My favourite shop in Ketchikan is now closed so tomorrow will be the last attempt to take back something quilty.

There were so many people in town!  There were ships were ships coming and going all day long.  In town at any one time there had to be 4 ships.  So tomorrow in smaller Skagway who knows how many we will arrive there.  Tomorrow we are going to have to go by tender to the town, so there will be more than a couple of ships in Skagway.  

I made eye contact with one girl who was promoting "eye cream to look 10 years younger.  So in we all went for my treatment.  With a Qtip she spread some goop on the underpart of my eyes.  Soon I felt the "tightening" and there I was ... Beautified for all to see. However, I found I really didn't like the feeling having never worn any kind of face makeup so my brief foray into 10 years younger ended and now I am back to all 73 years of me.

Had coffee at a native Alaskan coffee shop called Sacred Grounds   and had a ice latte Nancy treated us to.  It was a guieter place than some of the others we passed by.  It was nice to sit and relax.  Our next stop was the T-Shirt Company - the place with the red shopping bags.  I was so looking forward to getting a new jacket.  They don't sell jackets anmore.  Just sweatshirts and tshirts and the usual touristy stuff.  Needless to say I was disappointed.  Still, a lovely walk around the town.

Once we were back on board it was time to look for dinner.  It was easy to go to the walk in anytime dining.  So it was nice to know that we don't need a reservation to have dinner in the dining room.  We watched more of the game shows in the Explorer Lounge - that place seems to appeal to us with the variety of things they offer for entertainment in any given evening.  

Nancy left before us to go back to the room and with the Princess Medalion, we were able to watch on the map as she was making her way back to our stateroom. We chuckled over one wrong turn she made and it almost appeared as if she had jumped off the ship, however, after a couple of right turns we were able to see that she made it back safely.  The sun didn't really set until 10.30 so at least we knew that she wasn't lost in the dark.

So an hour later, we went back and we found her safely tucked in bed and reading.  It wasn't long before we were safely tucked in also.  Skagway tomorrow and some more exploring to do!

BLOWING IN THE WIND

Well after some difficulties logging on and out of devices...I think I have it sorted now so that I actually can blog each day.

Our first night at sea was a blustery one.  There was loud and howling winds and we sailed north through the inside passage.  The water wasn't rough, but the noisy wind kept us awake periodically through the night.

The day began as most days do cruising...get up and get breakfast.  The buffet area on deck 15 was so cold.  Definitely needed a sweater or sweatshirt while having our breakfast, but as it was only Day 1 in that area...we were unprepared.  We didn't linger.  We were soon on our way to find a latte to warm us up.

This is our first experience with a medalion instead of a cruise card and I must say I quite like it!  It allows you to locate friends on the ship as well as when approaching your stateroom, your door automatically unlocks so you just have to use the handle to enter.  Quite convenient.  

We had dinner in the main dining room.   It was delicious.  I have rarely had an issue with the food or the choices available.  Tonight one of the choices was tenderloin slices of beef.  Nothing to complain about there!  Nancy enjoyed escargots.  We tried our luck in the casino after dinner and believe me, there was no luck for us!  But we saved some of our combined deposit to try again another night.  Regardless of or lack of winnings...we had fun together.

Then we were off to the  Explorer's Lounge to participate in a few of the games that you could join in on.  The two we saw were music oriented - it was a good way to spend a few hours.  We will make our way to the Explorer's Lounge each evening I think as it is fun

So another day is done and dusted and tomorrow we arrive in Juneau so we have a chance to go explore.  Already I can feel that I am anxious to go find the quilt store(s).  I know I will have luck there!  😉

EMBARKATION DAY ON THE EMERALD PRINCESS

Today was very smooth.  Came to the terminal for 12:00 and Pam walked down to give us a nice send off.  How great to see her.  We easily went through check in and security and then right on the ship.  We boarded the ship and then went strait to have lunch.  

Lunch was good and so nice to sit down after being in the lineup for security and all the walking.  Walking is only beginning as we are right at the bow of the ship and everything seems after or centre.  It will do us good with all the delicious food that we should encounter.  Drinks were wine and a shandy for me.

We made our way to the International Cafe to get a delicious latte.  We already made some new friends.  They were from 4 different areas...Grand Cayman, Langley and two other places.  Lol already I forgot the two other places.  They had already been visiting a couple of bars when we saw them, so although they were  happy and we had fun chatting with them.  They are a group of 12 traveling together.  Must have been hard to get all of them to find a time that would be convenient.  

We were able to make a dinner reservation in the dining room for tomorrow, but tonight tonight we were able to get into the BBQ rib place for our dinner.  Nancy was quite adamant she did not want to eat in the buffet.  Dinners are great in the dining room, however, breakfast or lunch is convenient in the buffet.  We walked through the buffet after our dinner and she thought she might try it for the earlier meal tomorrow.  They have sinks in the restaurants and the buffet to do hand washing.  They also have the hand sanitizers everywhere so there is no excuse to have unclean hands.

Dinner at the BBQ place wasn't wonderful.  The brisket was tough and didn't have a lot of flavour and the pork ribs were chewy.  My biggest problem was the cornbread had two types of spread.  I heard cheese pimento and honey and I thought just butter...however, it turned out it was honey, butter and jalapeno.  Ah my favourite...NOT!  Oh well, we won't be going there again anyway.  We will be going to the dining room for the rest of our meals.  My tongue was flaming for a bit, however, I was able to put the flames out with a lemon drop martini!

So after dinner we wandered around a bit and ended up back at the coffee shop for a Spanish Coffee!  You might have guessed we have a drink package.  It came with the gratuities and wifi - so it really was a good deal!

So day 1 is now done and ready to be put to rest as are we.  Talk at you again tomorrow.

ALASKA BOUND - STAY TUNED!

                                                        

                                                                                            Colleen, Nancy and I are ready to set sail to Alaska on the 23rd of June.  So looking forward to a trip up and back again.  It is so easy to just go to downtown Vancouver and then hop on the ship and unpack for the week.  This trip is one I never grow tired of.  Our Mom loved this trip and it is so easy to understand why when you can see the most beautiful BC scenery out the window each day until we reach Alaska and then the rugged shoreline of such a beautiful state.

June is an especially interesting time to travel north as we get to experience more hours of daylight.  It won't get completely dark until about 11.30 p.m. and then the sun begins to rise around 2:00 am.  Not that it really matters as the stateroom has roo darkening blinds...but it is just a neat experience.  

I am so looking forward to visiting the familiar shops in the ports that we will visit.  Still the same, Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan.  The quilt shops are looking forward to my visit I'm sure!  

We will be traveling on the Emerald Princess and instead of Glacier Bay and Tracy Arm, we will see the Endicott Arm and the Dawes Glacier.  

So the 3 of us will share a stateroom and I will post daily updates so you can follow along if you choose to.

Talk again soon!

Today, we are up only to have breakfast and then get to the airport and on our way back to Phoenix.  It was a good time here  I am leaving Vegas with the same amount of money as I came with - other than meals.  So I consider that a win!

We arrived at Henry Reid Airport in plenty of time to sit for a bit and then board our flight - Yay everything in order and we left on time.  It is only a short 1 hour flight to Phoenix from Las Vegas - unlike our flight the other day!  We could have driven quicker...but who knew it was to be so delayed due to the terrible storms in the east.  

So arrived back on Phoenix and Mike was there to pick us up and drive us back.  I took some time to start packing for the trip home and yay -everything fits in my suitcase! Today the temperature here is a lovely 78 - 80 degrees and feels lovely and warm.  The planes are so cold.  I actually put a sweatshirt on in Sharon's house just to get cozy.

Tonight we are going to Nick's for dinner - this is a favourite restaurant of Mike and Sharon's that isn't too far away.  I think they took me there once several years ago.  It is very good!

Nick's didn't disappoint.  The food was delicious!  I had a capellini pasta with olives, onions, tomatoes and parm cheese.  Very similar to Capellini Pomodoro that the Olive Garden used to serve.  It was so good - I really enjoyed it a lot!

Back to Sharon's for a quiet night and to pack to go home tomorrow.

THE WIZARD OF OZ AND THE SPERE

After our long and tiring day yesterday, we were up at 8:30 to begin our first full day in Las Vegas.  Today I have an agenda!  There is a quilting store called Sew Yeah and I want to go there!   

After a breakfast we were ready to make our way to the front of the hotel to catch a Lyft ride to take us to our destination.  It was a great ride to see part of Las Vegas that I have never seen before.  It wasn't long before we arrived at the shop!  A huge shop with almost everything you can imagine and more!  I loved it!   Average prices per yard here are between 10.00 and 14:00.  The fabrics were all fresh and beautiful.  I can't even begin to imagine how many bolts they had of every designer imaginable.  They are not at all interested in applique not did they have any kits that I was interested in.  Even the kits that were prepared we and weren't very expensive.  I did by a glue pen - the kind I like - because it was pink will little butterflies!

  

After we left there, I had the Uber driver drop me off downtown on Fremont Street.  I really wanted to play blackjack and the tables are way too expensive on the strip.  Also they were doing a Canadian and Par promotion and I had taken $200 cdn just in case I would be able to take advantage of that.  

So back to black jack!  I was playing at a $10.00 table and the gimmick at this table was you had to always place an extra $2.00 on the spot.  If you got a black jack, you were able to spin the wheel for an extra bonus.  I managed to get 5 black jacks while I was playing and the bonuses I got were $30.00, $500.00, $40.00, $20.00 and  $20.00.  I was ecstatic.  This made up for my losing evening last night.  And I still had some of my original US$ left that I brought down with me.  

I took $680 away from the table after starting with $60.00 and went to play the slots at the casing with the at par and played for quite a while.  One thing I realized that if I had a win at the machine - I had to go cash the ticket in and pocket the winnings right away or as soon as you started spinning again, it was using your winnings first instead of going to the US$200.00 - so I was glad I figured that out as quick as I did.

I headed back to the Wynn and got there at 5:30.  Sharon and I had time to go to dinner and had a delicious pizza and salad and then make our way to the Venetian and the Sphere to see the Wizard of Oz.  What a spectacular show.  You really were immersed in the experience.  It was great and I was so glad to have the opportunity to see it.  I didn't manage to get an apple, however they were for sale in the lobby, so I bought one for Kim.  She really wanted one.  I did get some of the leaves, but no luck on the apple.

So back to the Wynn and the Encore for more unlucky slot play - but still fun.  Tired from our day and so much walking, I fell into bed around 12.15.  It was a very busy day.

LAS VEGAS ADVENTURE

Today started off well, got up and out of bed on time and then into the shower and ready to get to the Sky Harbour Airport for our 9:10 flight.  Nope that flight was cancelled!  so Mike was able to get us switched to another flight that was set to leave at 9:00 and sounded like a great alternative.  So we went to our gate only to find out after an hour and a bit that the flight we were on this time was delayed.  First of all by one hour and then later the announcement came that we would be delayed leaving until 4:00.  

That delay meant that we would not be in time to see the show we had booked at the Sphere.  We had tickets to see the 5:00 show of the Wizard of Oz.  A spectacular one we are told.  So Sharon got on the phone to ticketmaster to hopefully get our tickets changed to the later show or a show tomorrow.  After several unsuccessful calls, it seemed like we would be out of luck and out of pocket for US$220 each. However she asked to talk to someone in a superior position to see if something could be done.  When the phone call came 30 minutes later, the fellow was so kind and said that he would be able to transfer the tickets.  Another call later and he said that it would be easier to refund the tickets and then we could rebook them.

Sharon was on top of that and booked us some seats for tomorrow's 8:00 show.  So other than losing some hours in Vegas, we are finally aboard a 737 aircraft and set to land in Las Vegas at 5:10.  It is amazing how tiring today has been.  I hope I am up to a full evening tonight.  I don't want to miss a minute of this little getaway!

Coming into the Las Vegas Strip is still as bright and beautiful as ever.  The new Sphere is very huge!  The scenes that are broadcast on this ever changing globe are so breathtaking.  I am glad to see it in person!

We arrived at the Wynn which is way further up the strip than I have ever been before.  We got up to our spacious room and got settled, freshened up and made our way downstairs to the casino.  We had a dinner reservation for 7:30 (as it was supposed to be after our show) so a quick gamble and a quick $60.00 gone and a Lemon Drop martini in my hand and it was time for dinner.  We ate at the Cave which is one of the many restaurants in the hotel.  Nice not to have to go anywhere.

After our dinner, we were once again on the casino floor.  Still no luck and then I noticed that I had lost my phone.  I asked one of the casino floor managers to help me and still nothing.  Checked with Lost and Found and it was probably too soon.  So off I wondered to play some machine and give some more time before I contacted Lost and Found again.  More money gone and no phone.  Until I was wandering around and the casino floor manager found me and said that Sharon had found my phone! I could hardly believe that she had found it and not too long after I lost it.  They had been looking for me for 45 minutes.  Sharon as annoyed at me and I don't blame her.  I had wandered too far.  However, now I have my phone back and I will certainly be more careful with my phone and considerate of Sharon to let her know about where I am in our remaining time here.

So...as I sit near Sharon, she is having some unbelievable luck!  I watched her take her bonus spins that went from 9 spins all the way up to 69 spins!  In all she won almost $300.00 on those spins and I figured she deserved such a good win after finding my phone and looking for me for as long as she did!  

So, here I am back in the room at 10:30 and hoping to connect with home, but you don't get free wifi from the room if the room is a free one!  I will remember to do all my messenging tomorrow from the casino floor tomorrow.

Tomorrow my plan is to be at a quilt store called Sew Yeah when they open at 10:00.  After that I would like to go downtown for a while and play some black jack.  It is cheaper down there and there is a possibility that Cdn is at par.  I would like that also!  However, now, I am ready to get to bed!  It has been a long day!