Sunday July 30, 2006
Vancouver->Alaska
We woke up this morning at 6:00 AM by alarm. We had also scheduled a wake up call at 6:10 in case the alarm didn’t work. When the phone rang, there was nothing on the other end, just silence. Odd, but I guess effective.
We showered, and went down to Main street where we eventually stopped at a café called “Waves.” They only had breakfast burritos, which sounded good in theory, but weren’t so hot in reality. Still, it was a funky little place with decent seating and free wireless internet.
Eventually finishing breakfast, we made our way back to the hotel, checked out and met everyone else downstairs at 9 AM when the bus arrived. We somehow crammed all the luggage in underneath, and drove off, eventually arriving at Granville Island where we had an hour and a half to wander.
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The Granville Market is an amazing thing. We were getting rather jealous looking at all the amazing food. It’s a foodie’s paradise with all sorts of fresh fish, sausages, cheeses, fruits, veggies, and just about any other ingredient you can think of. I think we would blow a bundle there if we had a kitchen.
We did buy two bottles of wine at a store there. We took recommendations from a girl with glasses. She saved us when we told her we planned to smuggle them onto the cruise ship. She told us to be sure to put them in checked bags, rather than carry ons as they scan the carryons (she was right, they did). Since we were planning on doing the opposite, we were very grateful for the advice. Even if the wine isn’t so hot, she’s forgiven just for the tip.
After this, we all got back on the bus and went to the mall near the pier. We had 45 minutes there, and DH and I picked up small bottles of hand cleaner (I couldn’t find mine before we left) and some lip balm (labello, which they don’t sell back home). At the very last minute, we found a Starbucks and I got my final Green Tea Frappacino until we reach a port.
Back on the bus, and 10 minutes later we were off and heading towards customs. The bus driver took care of our luggage, we only had to deal with carry-ons, which was very nice. We had to go through several lines: one for security, one for customs, and one for getting our room key, and then finally on the boat.
The boat itself, The Celebrity Infinity is enormous. It dwarfed the Norwegian Cruise Line boat docked next to it. As we boarded, they provided Champagne and Mimosas. We grabbed a champagne each and headed over to the shore excursions line as we had been neglectful in making those reservations. So, we booked the incredibly expensive glacier trek and a hiking trip, and then headed to our cabin.
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Room 9132 is ok. The room itself is nice, oddly enough, the bedspread brings it down quite a bit. The room would look much better with a less threadbear cover, but the rest of it is fine. I do notice the inevitable signs of wear and tear, but we have a balcony and that makes up for a multitude of sins.
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We grabbed a late lunch sitting on an outdoor deck in the back of the ship. The food (salad and veggies for us) was quite good and the staff seemed very friendly. We wandered around a bit and entered a give away (which we didn’t win), and eventually made our way back to the cabin where we found our luggage waiting outside the door.
As we unpacked, there was a knock at the door and we met our stateroom attendant, Meriam. It’s strange unpacking to such a degree, but nice to not be living out of a suitcase, which we plan not to touch for the remainder of the trip.
At 5, we had a lifeboat drill where we had to go down to deck 4 (from 9) and stand around listening to euphemisms for “we’re sinking” while we all wear large orange life vests. People on the dock laughed and took pictures, but we know they’re jealous they aren’t coming.
45 minutes later, we were finally back in our cabin getting ready for dinner which was supposed to be a six. While we were getting ready, there was another knock at the door, and Meriam brought in a covered dish which contained chocolate covered strawberries from M (the girl we booked the cruise through). Very nice touch. Since we were about to leave for dinner, we put it in the fridge for later.
Even though it was casual night, we still had to put a little effort into our clothes as we can’t wear jeans. It also turned our that we were the only ones at our table for at least a half an hour.
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We went ahead without them and we were into the second course when everyone finally arrived. We are seated with all the family. I don’t know what the hell that was about, but apparently the habit of being late runs in the family.
DH and I had the same things until dessert: Shrimp Cocktail, Tomato Bisque soup, Caesar Salad, Prime Rib, and dessert. I had the Crème Brulee, and DH had the Raspberry Cheesecake. Everything was excellent, except the salad was too drenched in dressing for my tastes, so I ate very little of it.
After dinner, we went to see AM's room, which is actually a suite as they had grandma with them too. It’s beautiful. There’s a separate bedroom with a walk-in closet and a wide-screen plasma TV. The bathroom has a whirlpool tub and a window to the living room, which has panoramic windows. The rooms are located in the front of the ship and stick out a bit. There is no balcony, but they had floor to ceiling glass and the effect is really something.
Later, we walked around the ship checking everything out and at 11, made our way back to our room. We sat outside with the strawberries and the cheaper of the two bottles. It wasn’t bad. A little more fruity than we’re used to. Has a great smell. For $12 Canadian a bottle, it was way better than the $8/glass wine we had with dinner (the name escapes me). Went well with the strawberries too.
When we finished the strawberries, and were just chatting, we caught the distinctive smell of Marijuana. Leaning over the balcony, I noticed a young guy in a white tee shirt and baseball cap way up ahead on the same floor. He was clearly the one as I saw him take a puff and when he turned and saw me, he pulled away from the railing and neither he, nor the smell made a reappearance.
After describing what I saw to DH, we both realized that it was likely a cousin. The area we saw him in was about where his cabin is. We plan to mess with him tomorrow, mentioning in front of others how we smelled pot from our balcony while he’s in earshot.
So, now it’s about 12:40. We should be in the inside passage tomorrow.
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