Thanks for Your Company on the Trip!

Next stop, Honolulu. See you "there" in early October!

This Wasn't the Orange County Swap Meet!

The rain began to drizzle when we got to the swap meet in Anchorage. These folks are hardy souls! We saw a lot of items for sale that you wouldn't find in California...that wolf pelt for instance. When Shirley said something about how sad it was, that man pictured started out about how not everyone lives near Safeway! We got the idea pretty quickly! The vegetables, while large, were very expensive, I thought, but we'd been told how expensive the cost of living was up there on some of the tours. Shirley was so excited to find her group gift exchange present, as I'd found mine in Skagway and Icy Strait Point. I also found a bead necklace made of Wooly Mamouth Ivory (!) and Caribou sausage, items unique to the area for sure!




Not having seen everything, but tired of the rain, we headed across the street to the Anchorage Hilton for lunch. I still wanted to photograph the art, as I had on the ship, but their bears and glass-encrusted salmon weren't quite the same...


My very last picture was blurry, but I could say it was like tears in my eyes when we finally had to leave for our flight home. I didn't want it to be over and I'd look forward to going again. This may have been the best vacation we had in years!

Saturday Morning Arrives Again as Saturday Mornings Always Do...

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We awoke (VERY early), docked in Seward. At 6:30 our group was off the boat and ready to go by bus to Anchorage and the airport (a 2.5 hr drive). We got the history of the time a tsunami hit Seward and wiped out the town. Along the way the driver told quaint stories about some of the people who live up there, and even pointed out a moose across the marshes. At the airport, we were met with an ocean of suitcases and we had to find and collect our own. Fortunately we could check the bags early and we had plenty of time to catch a cab to the local swap meet in town.

The Last Evening's Show Was a Melange of Broadway & Circus Acts

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There wasn't a slackening off of the show on the last evening. The stage sets for this scale were amazing. The man and woman from Cirque who performed most nights were again, breathtaking. There were several songs from Phantom, but I didn't get a good (enough) picture. As each evening, we went away wanting more!

Last Evening...Last Dinner

If you've "been on this trip with me", it's sad to say that the time is winding down. Thought to add a view of the dining room from where we sat on the second tier. For dinner I photographed the spring roll that Ken had. I had the scallop dinner with the pasta. When I didn't eat the pasta, Erbay was concerned that I might want more scallops and offered to bring them to me. Oh, how I'll miss that when I'm back home! The desserts (as always) were wonderful. Ken had the pear souffle and I had a taste. You could really taste the pears! David might seem to be looking bored at the dessert tray, but when Earbay finishes telling us about everything, David will brighten and ask for two scoops of ice cream!

Barb & Ed's Cocktail Party

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Michael's Club, where the party was held, was a beautiful room for entertaining. There's Ed and his long time friend, George, from their military days, and below that, Barbara's sister, Diane, and her husband, George. I have three blogs of party pictures.
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Barbara & Ed's Cocktail Party the Last Evening

There was never a slow nor uninteresting spell aboard ship this past week. On the final evening, Barbara and Ed threw a cocktail party for everyone who came along to celebrate Ed's birthday.

Michael's Club Cocktail Party

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On our last evening, Barb and Ed threw a lovely cocktail party for everyone who'd come along on the trip.

All American Day in the Lunch Room

Marco & Shirley

Making Bananas Foster for lunch-time dessert

Ed, Barb & Ken in the lunch line

Gary, double dipping desserts

Loved this piece of art work in the hallway

We Turn Barb & Ed's Champagne Party into a Birthday Celebration

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Before lunch, Barb and Ed invited us all from down at "our end of the dorm", as we called our sequential rooms, to share a glass of champagne and celebrate a really wonderful cruise together.

Gary, Lorna, Ken and David

Ron, Barb, Ed and Nancy. We use this gathering to give Ed the birthday present we'd brought along for him.

We gave Ed an engraved money clip that he's just tried out and is slipping it into his pocket.