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<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Setting Sail from Vancouver to Alaska Saturday, July 2, 2016: As usual I awoke at 6.00 am and while Llew had a lie-in, I managed to get some blogging done. I was also excited to discover that my internet connection on my laptop actually worked and I managed to get and send email (unlike… <\/p>\n
\nJuly 2, 2016: <\/span><\/b><\/span><\/div>\n
\na lie-in, I managed to get some blogging done. I was also excited to discover
\nthat my internet connection on my laptop actually worked and I managed to get
\nand send email (unlike the last time I had traveled to Canada when I could not
\neven find any internet connections). However, it was a good job I did
\neverything I wanted for my joy was short lived. Within 20 minutes, it was gone.
\nA little while later, after I had done some blogging, Llew awoke, showered,
\nshaved, dressed and got ready. I followed swiftly, then went down to get us
\ncoffee and Nutella croissants from the local Tim Hortons<\/i> downstairs and,
\n<\/span>not too long after, we were on the airport shuttle to get to the
\nSkytrain that took us back to the Waterfront. The fact that it was a holiday
\nweekend in Canada and a Saturday meant that trains were empty\u2014this made it
\nreally easy for us to load and remove our baggage from the train. From there,
\nwe easily found our way to the cruise piers in the basement of the Convention
\nCenter.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nthought we\u2019d be one of the first to embark as 2.00 pm is given as Embarkation
\nTime; but by 11.30 am, the place was already crawling with people and the Hall
\nwas filled. Everything was super organized with European precision and we were
\nsoon finding our way to the check-in counter where we were given our boarding
\ncards by Holland-America Lines\u2014HAL–(our baggage had been taken earlier) and
\nthen we were off and away. I was quite excited by this point especially at the
\nthought of having a few hours to explore the ship and find our way around it.
\nWe had an ocean view room on the 4th<\/sup> floor which was very well
\nlocated for the Reception Counter, main shops, etc. were just a floor below. In
\nno time, we were aboard but went directly to Reception to try to make a lunch
\nreservation on one of the two days it is usually offered in the pan-Asian
\nrestaurant called Tamarind<\/i>\u2014about
\nwhich I had read on the internet\u2014but was disappointed to find that it has been
\ndiscontinued. So off to our stateroom we went and found that it (and the rest
\nof the ship) is an exact replica of the Eurodam on which we had sailed through
\nthe Baltic Sea in 2013. There was a sense of comfort in the familiarity of it
\nall but it was also a trifle predictable. Perhaps it would have been more fun
\nto discover new horizons!<\/span><\/div>\n
\ndid not lose much time in our rooms, however, as our bags had not yet arrived.
\nInstead, as it was almost 1.00 pm and as we only had a croissant and coffee for
\nbrekkie, we went off to the Manhattan<\/i>,
\nthe Main Dining Room\u2014for lunch. It was our first meal on board and I looked
\nforward to something really special. Only a few people were in the
\nrestaurant\u2014most were still embarking. Both Llew and I chose the Cream of
\nBroccoli Soup for starters\u2014it was thick and very delicious. I avoided the bread
\nas I am still trying to limit carbs. For our main, I had the Apricot-Glazed
\nSalmon served with zucchini and carrots and steamed potatoes (which I avoided).
\nOnce I got over the sweetness of the apricot sauce that was poured over the
\nsalmon, it actually turned out to be quite good. Llew had the Pulled Pork
\nSandwich served with Red Cabbage Slaw which was really good. For dessert, the
\ntwo of us had the Biscotti Ice-Cream\u2014I ordered mine with a few strawberries. So
\nthat was it. It was a good meal, but not outstanding, but the cruise had not
\neven begun yet.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nwas time to get to our stateroom where we found that our baggage had been
\ndelivered together with a whole lot of delicious goodies\u2014a tray of tea-time
\nsandwiches (smoked salmon, brie, ham and cheese, prosciutto\u2014all fab), a tray of
\nsweets (truffles, cake, a chocolate tower), a tray of cut up fresh
\nfruit\u2014together with a basket of fruit and a lovely flower arrangement. We felt
\nvery special indeed! It was time to unpack and we found spacious closets with
\nroom enough for all our needs (I certainly travel very light and had no difficulty
\naccommodating all my things). Unpacking done, we stashed our bags under our bed
\nand went off to Reception again to made reservations for 8.00 pm dinners at
\nsome of the specialty restaurants on board at a time that would also allow us
\nto attend the shows in the theater each night. All that done, we made our way
\nto the theater for an introduction to the facilities and amenities available on
\nboard as well as to take a walking tour of the main areas of the ship and the
\nareas we intended to use\u2014such as the gym, the pools (indoor and outdoor), the
\nhot tub, the Crow\u2019s Nest which is the enclosed 11th<\/sup> floor
\nObservation Deck, etc.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nthis time, it was close to Embarkation Time and we had the mandatory Emergency
\nDrill procedure to attend on deck. Having gone through this before, we knew
\nexactly what to do and in no time, we were on the deck, participating in Roll
\nCall, listening to evacuation and other instructions and chatting with a few
\nother passengers. When it was over, it was time for departure so we made our
\nway to the Lido Deck on the 9th<\/sup> floor at exactly 4.45pm to attend
\nthe Sail Away. This included drinks on the deck, the opportunity to grab one of
\nthe deck chairs that we positioned at the very front of the ship (it helped to
\nget there early–but this turned out to be the aft or back) and to enjoy views
\nof Vancouver as we departed. Going under a great big bridge was an additional
\ntreat as we listened to music, chatted with a few of our companions, enjoyed the
\ncomplimentary nibbles\u2014salmon, beef steak in horseradish sauce and spoons of
\nbaked brie with cranberry sauce and nuts–as we saw Vancouver recede in the
\nbackground and the islands of the Archipelago that we had seen en route to
\nWhistler by road come into view. Llew enjoyed lying on the deck chair while I
\nleft at 5.30 to pick up the complimentary ship\u2019s charm that was offered to
\nanyone who arrived at the Main Shopping Desk. I then reconnected with Llew as
\nwe returned to our stateroom. I ordered a cup of tea from Room Service and we
\nbegan nibbling on our savory goodies in our room as Llew sipped some wine. <\/span><\/div>\n
\nwasn\u2019t long before we dressed for dinner and went in search of the
\ncomplimentary glasses of champagne offered by the jewelry showroom and art
\ngallery on board and with that in hand, we made our way back to the Manhattan<\/i> to have dinner before we could
\nattend the live show in the theater. Only we discovered that our wait for
\ndinner would be 20-25 minutes and, rather handily, since the Explorer\u2019s Bar<\/i> was just next-door, we
\nsat down to enjoy a violinist and a pianist do wonderful soft classical chamber
\nmusic. We were hugging the coast of Canada throughout our sail and the movement
\nof the sea could barely be felt at all. <\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\nseated for our first dinner at sea in the Manhattan<\/i>,
\na massive dining hall, where we found the menu for the evening was devised by
\nchef Elizabeth Faulkner of whom I have never heard. I started with the Broiled
\nScallops with Bacon, Avocado Mash and a vinaigrette\u2014but my scallops were tiny,
\nthe mash was bland and I found no interest whatsoever in the dish. Llew had the
\nsalad of mixed greens with caramelized apple which was far better. Since I was
\ndying to also try it, I asked for a tiny portion of the Ketchikan Fisherman\u2019s
\nChowder in a sample serving (it was served in a bread bowl as a regular
\nportioned starter) and found it to be simply delicious and filled with tiny
\nscallops. For a main, Llew had the Shrimp and Chorizo with Grits which was
\nserved with okra\u2014a typical New Orleans dish\u2014while I chose the New York Strip
\nLoin done medium rare. Llew got three very large shrimp and I got an outsized
\npiece of steak. We split our entrees and while they were both good, there was
\nnothing to shout about either one of them. For dessert, Llew got the Mango
\nMousse while I got the Klondike Gold Rush Baked Alaska which was a brownie,
\ntopped with Vanilla Ice-cream and Meringue with a chocolate sauce poured over.
\nAgain, it was good but not outstanding. Since we needed to rush off for the show,
\nwe grabbed our things and left right after dessert.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nfound ample room. Nick, our Cruise Director, was holding forth, calling out a
\nfew raffle numbers and giving out prizes before the main act of the evening
\narrived\u2014a stand up comedian called Chad\u2014who entertained up for about 15
\nminutes. His jokes and his acting were pretty lame and by that point in time,
\nmy eyes were closing. It was 10.00 pm and any hopes I had of sitting in a Piano
\nBar and singing along were wiped off as we decided instead to get back to our
\nstateroom and call it a night. But after changing and getting into more
\ncomfortable wear, we headed to the Crow\u2019s Nest to see what it felt like to
\nenter the Seymounr Narrows, a tiny inlet just past Vancouver Island. However,
\nit was very dark and while we could see land on one side close to us, we saw
\nnothing on the other side. We did see\u2014literally\u2014a ship pass us by night. It was
\na Holland America ship returning to Vancouver\u2014which is where we will be a week
\nfrom now. It was time to well and truly get back to our staterooms to sleep.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nfirst day and we did not have a dull moment. <\/span><\/span><\/div>\n