{"id":520,"date":"2016-07-17T15:25:00","date_gmt":"2016-07-17T15:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochellesroost.com\/index.php\/2016\/07\/17\/a-birthday-within-the-inside-passage-alaska\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T04:59:36","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T04:59:36","slug":"a-birthday-within-the-inside-passage-alaska","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochellesroost.com\/index.php\/2016\/07\/17\/a-birthday-within-the-inside-passage-alaska\/","title":{"rendered":"A Birthday Within The Inside Passage, Alaska"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\nFriday,
\nJuly 8, 2016: A Day Spent Sailing Towards Vancouver:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\nBeing
\na Lector at my Birthday Mass:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span> <\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/span><\/b> <\/span>I awoke on my birthday with a jolt to realize
\nthat we needed to race down for 8.00 am Mass. Since I wanted to serve as
\nLector, it was important to get there early. By 7. 50, I was in the Hudson Room
\nand Fr, Tim was presenting me with the reading for the day. I went through it
\nrapidly, quite thrilled indeed to be able to hear Mass on board on my birthday.
\nIt was our last Mass of the cruise and Fr. Tim said a special blessing for us.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nBreakfast
\nat the Lido and a Final Lecture:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>As
\nusual, the Lido was mobbed by people who wanted a long and leisurely brekkie on
\ntheir last day on board. I got the Swiss Muesli for a starter followed by
\nwaffles with strawberries and cream and OJ. Llew and I found a really nice spot
\nto watch the many islands of the Vancouver Archipelago slide by us\u2014some large,
\nsome small, some far away and misty, others really close at hand. When we felt
\nquite sated, I decided to go for a presentation to the Queens Lounge on \u2018Alaskan
\nExplorers\u2019 given by naturalist Humberto\u2014and it was very informative indeed. He
\nspoke to us about Vitus Bering, about Dahl (after whom the porpoises are
\nnamed), about Seward (after whom an Alaskan city is named), about George
\nVancouver\u2019s role in mapping out the region and finally about the Alaskan
\nPurchase (from Russia). <\/span><\/div>\n
\nAfter an hour, we
\ndecided it was time to return to our stateroom to begin our packing as tomorrow
\nby this time, we will have docked at Vancouver. Determined to enjoy every last
\nminute on board, we also wanted to make sure we stayed on track.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nPacking
\nOur Cases for Departure:  <\/span><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>For
\nthe next hour or so, Llew and I focused on getting all our stuff into our
\nsuitcases (concealed under our bed) while also keeping aside the things we
\nwould need for the rest of the day (including semi-formal dinner wear) and
\nclothes for the next morning\u2019s departure. We are quite amazed by how much we
\nhave accumulated even though we kept our buys to the minimum.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nInvitation
\nto the Mariner\u2019s Lunch at the Manhattan<\/i>:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>Packing
\ndone, Llew and I decided to go for the Mariner\u2019s Lunch at the Manhattan <\/i>for which we were especially
\ninvited. We were ten minutes late but we need not have worried. Sit -down
\nservice for a three-course lunch was offered. We both opted for the Crab and
\nShrimp Cocktail served already dressed in a light mayonnaise with shredded
\nlettuce. For a main course, I chose the halibut with grilled shrimp served with
\na lime-cilantro sauce and grilled asparagus, while Llew got the beef brisket
\nwith mashed potatoes. And for dessert, both of us chose the Mixed Berry Cobbler
\nwhich was absolutely delicious. Coffee and petits
\nfours<\/i> were part of the meal and we enjoyed them both before we got back to
\nour staterooms.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nFinally,
\na Session at the Gym:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>I
\nwas keen not to leave the boat without putting in at least one session at the
\ngym. Having walked around the deck several times for exercise, I decided I
\nought to go and check out the gym and take in the views of the passing islands
\nwhich were just a visual treat at every juncture. And indeed, that was where I
\nwent after I climbed into a T-shirt, shorts and my sneakers. For the next half
\nhour, both Llew and I were at the elliptical machine gazing at the prow of the
\nship and the route that lay ahead of us. It was absolutely delightful and I was
\nsorry I had not found the time to get to the gym every single day. But then,
\nthat\u2019s the problem with being on a cruise that offers so much. It was essential
\nto me to have tried varied experiences each day and to have immersed myself in
\nthe true spirit of cruising which does involve dashing from one end of the ship
\nto the other and from the lowest floors to the topmost.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nPlaying
\nBingo for a Free Cruise:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n    <\/span>   <\/span>By this time, we discovered that a single
\ngame of Bingo was being offered in one of the lounges and that the prize was a
\n7-day cruise for two to the Caribbean or Mexico. Well, you have to be in it, to
\nwin it, right? What a great Birthday Present it would make! So off we raced to
\nthe Queen\u2019s Lounge to buy our tickets\u2014a card of six for $35 and to play a form
\nof Bingo which was slightly different from the \u201cHousie\u201d with which we are more
\nfamiliar. I have to say that it was fun and when we started sweating for just 2
\nmore numbers on one of our cards, we were sorry that someone else won the
\nhouse, but not so sorry when we discovered that the guy who won the prize was
\nalso celebrating his birthday! Oh well, at least one Birthday Person got a
\nreally unforgettable present that day!<\/span><\/div>\n
\nTime
\nfor a quick nap and Cookery Cards:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>We
\ndid actually find time for a nap\u2014a short one for me, my usual 20 minute shut
\neye– before I darted off to the Explorer\u2019s Lounge to pick up all the recipe
\ncards that pertained to the many cookery demonstrations that had been carried
\nout on the liner. Several of these demos had been presented when we were
\nsightseeing in the various ports\u2014and so we had missed them. It was good to
\ncollect about thirty recipe cards for some of the delicious concoctions we had
\nenjoyed during the cruise. That task accomplished, it was time for us to get
\nback to our staterooms to shower and dress for dinner as we had reservations at
\nthe Pinnacle Grill which is one of the specialty restaurants on the ship. <\/span><\/div>\n
\nOff
\nfor a Birthday Dinner to the Pinnacle Grill:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>We
\nwould be wearing our glad rags for the last time on the cruise and we were glad
\nthat it would be on my birthday. Our 8. 30 pm reservations at the Pinnacle
\nGrill saw us seated at a lovely sea-facing table with an amuse-bouche<\/i> of stewed mushrooms placed before us in tiny
\ndemi-tasse cups. We were sorely disappointed that the Alaskan King Crab Legs
\nwere all gone\u2014but in all fairness, it was the last day of the cruise and we had
\na very late reservation. After we ordered drinks (a Cabernet for Llew, a vodka
\ncocktail for me) we got down to ordering our three-course meal: it was going to
\nbe special, we hoped, for it would be nice to save the best for last. Since our
\nfriend Tony who had tasted the Lobster Bisque at the Pinnacle Grill<\/i> on our last cruise had pronounced it the best he had
\never had, both Llew and I decided to have that. And it was amazing–just filled
\nwith lobster bits and very flavorful indeed. For a main course, I chose fish
\nagain with shrimp scampi while Llew had steak and for dessert, the two of us chose
\nthe Not\u2014So Classic Baked Alaska with Cherry Garcia Ice-Cream and Bing Cherries
\nJubilee which is a HAL specialty,  <\/span>a demo
\nitem by Chef Suraj, a few days ago. And just when we thought the meal was done,
\nalong came a waiter with a massive slab of Chocolate Mousse Cake to celebrate
\nmy birthday. Sadly, he did not sing Sarta
\nMurliya<\/i>\u2014which is the traditional Indonesian song that is sung almost every
\nnight at the Manhattan<\/i>. He merely
\nsang a quiet Happy Birthday, but there was a candle and he did procure a knife
\nand I did cut the cake\u2014which Llew and I only proceeded to taste (it was
\nawesome) as we were filled to bursting with our celebration meal. <\/span><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>I
\ncan only say how blessed I feel that for several years in a row, I have
\ncelebrated my birthday in different parts of the world\u2014in the past few years,
\nit has been in Berlin, Kyoto, South Africa and now in Alaska. Outside, our ship
\nwas worming its way through what is known as the Seymour Narrows\u2014as the name
\nsays, it is a very narrow inlet through which the captain maneuvers the craft.
\nIslands passed us by in the soft shades of a North American dusk as we inched
\ncloser home with every nautical mile we covered. It was a lovely birthday and
\none that was made special by the many email and Twitter messages I received
\nfrom family members and friends around the world.<\/span><\/div>\n
\nLast
\nNight and Birthday Bash at the Piano Bar:<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>We
\nended a really terrific day at the Piano Bar in the company of the one and only
\nJimmy Maddox who, on having been told at the gym, where we had met him earlier
\nthis morning, that it was my birthday, decided that he would sing and play for
\nus his funny Birthday Song. Well, it was a funny song indeed and it was great
\nfun to have the entire crowd at the bar (and there were hordes as it was the
\nlast night and Jimmy had accumulated a faithful band of fan followers) as we
\nushered the almost-end of my birthday. It had been a night to remember and I
\nwas so thrilled by the way things had turned out. Llew, who was feeling a
\ntrifle unwell, had left earlier, but I stayed until midnight, when the bar
\nclosed, to see my birthday out in it\u2019s entirely. Since we had put our clocks
\none hour forward at midnight, my birthday came to a sudden and abrupt end\u2014but
\nit was true fun while it lasted and I had a ball!<\/span><\/div>\n
\n            <\/span>Back
\nin my stateroom, I found I had about ten minutes to zip up my case and place it
\noutside our door for removal by the porters. I met the deadline and before
\nlong, Llew and I were fast asleep. Our last day on board had been packed to the
\ngills but it had been a fabulous day and an amazing cruise and I have to say I
\nwas sorry it ended.  <\/span>   <\/span>        <\/span>     <\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
\n     Until tomorrow…<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Friday, July 8, 2016: A Day Spent Sailing Towards Vancouver: Being a Lector at my Birthday Mass:                I awoke on my birthday with a jolt to realize that we needed to race down for 8.00 am Mass. Since I wanted to serve as Lector, it was important to get there early. By 7. 50,… <\/p>\n

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