Trip to Seattle

We joined the line of cars waiting to load the 10:15am ferry to Seattle.  A security dog sniffs each car in the four lines.  We drive on to the ferry, park the car and climb two flights to the passenger deck.  I get coffee and settle in for the forty-five minute ride.  I watch passengers and the passing scene.  I eavesdrop on the group in the next seating booth.  I hear a local telling their southern visitors about the area.  They share "home" stories.  A cell phone rings. "Hello.  I can't hear you."  Someone else takes the phone.  "Here I'll see if I can hear."  pause- Speaker phone,  Now everyone can hear.   Someone begins to talk of the Tacoma Narrows bridge and how to cross only the free direction and go back another way to avoid paying a bridge toll.  They decide it is too much trouble to save a couple of dollars.  We d rive off the ferry, turn right and find  terminal five where our cruise will start.  We tour Seattle due to my less-than-perfect navigation skills. eventually we get to the bookstore.

We took a trip to Seattle to visit my friend Jennifer.  We drove on to the ferry, parked the car and took pictures of the trip.  In Seattle we visited the University of Washington bookstore. Met Jennifer and she took us to a tiny Mexican restaurant.  After lunch we caravan to a small but tranquil Japanese garden.  Walking among the perfectly pruned and shaped trees is relaxing.  In the water are many well-fed carp.  We see about out eight dinner-plate size turtles and one duck.  

Time to go.  Jennifer gives directions back to the ferry dock.  All is well.  We are following the signs to the bremerton ferry and suddenly find ourselves in the hell of Seattle freeway traffic.  I have never eard Paulette swear as she did in the five or ten minutes it took us to find an exit.  Fortunately  it was the street we needed.   Although the turn looks wrong when we get to the corner that threw us into hell we take the opposite way and find the ferry dock.  On board we buy Haggen Das ice cream bars for $4 each (worth it) and soon we are back in Bremerton.  Paulette has a private lesson with Chris.  The group Rumba class followed.  Great day.

I will post more photos of Seattle later.  My learning curve on photobucket is high.

 

I'm back

OK so I've been back for five days and haven't gotten anything posted.  Sorry.   My nice little internet provider was bought by COMCAST.  It took me four hours of waiting one day and then another two the next to get back on line.  I find it interesting how much I use email, my blog and the internet in my life.

Now I'm working on the slide show.  I don't think I want to use all 300 pictures.  Some of them aren't that good.  And I'm very proud of some of them.

Have a look at my first video.

Last day.

This evening we will be in Victoria, Vancouver, British Columbia.  We are going to the Burchart gardens.  Something everyone we talked to said not to miss.  Right now we are sailing along through fog.  Mostly it is cold outside but comfortable inside.  We are 120 nautical miles to Victoria.  The captain just said so.

We walked the deck for breast cancer.  It is the Holland American chosen charity and they have raised $1,000,000 in the last year.  It was a little cold but fun to walk the 3.2 miles.   Last night at our formal dinner they brought out baked Alaska for dessert.  The dining room staff walked around the dining room with the Alaska with sparklers while marching music played.  The chef and his crew came out for bow.  We were eating with a couple from Liberty, Indiana.  She had just retired from 28 years of teaching and he changed from teaching to investment business in the 70's.  It was the fourth night we sat with people we didn't know and there was at least one teacher in each group.

Yesterday we walked all over, well almost all over the port at Ketchikan, Alaska.  It sits at the base of a mountain and houses built on the mountain side are reached by long stairways.  It is a most interesting way of getting around.  We have taken a lot of pictures but I choose not to use our time to post them since we get charged for internet connection.  I wasn't going to pay but I wanted to write something while on the ship.  We have both taken a lot of pictures.  

Here's to BUCKSNORT coffee.

Sue:  I'd go again.

Alaska at last

Today we have been sailing through the Tracy Arm and Endicott Arm on our way from Juneau to Sitka.  The scenery has been gorgeous, fantastic, beautiful, awe-inspiring and any other adjective you can think of to describe scenery.  We viewed the Sawyer Glacier and sailed among ice floes and icebergs from early morning until noon.  Right now outside our window I see mountains that rival Colorado and Yosemite.

Cruising is fun.  The food IS wonderful and always available.  

More details of other days later.

There are four of these fountains at the Bremerton Ferry terminal.

Pictures

I told you there was MOOSESNORT COFFEE    

Far left is Chris and Paulette doing Cha Cha.

More pre-cruise fun

Paulette and I explore Port Orchard.  The main street has a few businesses, and antique mall, a couple of antique stores and The Candy Shoppe (Yes, we bought candy.  Salt Water taffy and peanut brittle.)

Lunch at the Corner Deli.  Great sandwiches and MOOSESNORT COFFEE.  Please don't leave out the R.  On our way to meet Chris we stop at the ferry port to see the dancing water fountain.  The wind adds some very splashy moves to the dance.  Flowers and fountains shaped like ship smoke stacks that spout like Old Faithful but not on schedule.  

Paulette has a Cha Cha lesson with Chris and we are off to Gig Harbor.  Chris goes to Costco.  At the YMCA (very posh and big)  I walk a mile and a quarter on a treadmill while Paulette takes a Zumba class.  Then we take a night club two step and a cha cha classes with Chris.