Travel

Since today's an "at sea" day, I thought I'd comment upon the vessel we're crusing on.

When I came on this cruise, it was with high expectations, as my only previous cruise was two years ago with Holland America. That cruise set the bar for all future cruises. I was also aware that I would likely find some things to complain about -- and in that, at least, I wasn't disappointed.

We had plenty of time to explore our next port of call, Skagway. The ship docked at 7:00am and we didn't leave again until 9:00pm. We didn't actually leave the ship until 11:00am; a short walk took us "downtown," where Cara was able to hit all of her jewelry stops.

It's interesting that someone, some time ago, decided to put Alaska's capital city in a spot that could not be reached but by air or by sea. I wanted to take some time to check out the Capitol building and the Governor's mansion, but, unfortunately, there just wasn't enough time to do that and my excursion.

Today we're at sea, so there's not much to comment on. I was able to get Internet service, at $100 for 250 minutes. And cell phone service is available, too, roaming with Cingular/Wireless Maritime Services. So there's no need to leave technology behind!

Last night we met up with Cara's mom and dad after their three-day drive up the coast. (That must have been quite a trip—four adults and two children under the age of 5 packed in a van for three days.

Well, maybe I won't put on the pounds so quickly when I've spent the last two days doing so much walking. When we looked at where the sights were, we decided to forego a car and just walk and use public transportation.

We looked online and found a couple walking tours. Both started at the Space Needle, but we unfortunately couldn't get reservations for lunch or dinner at the SkyCity restaurant. Busy place!

Speaking of dining, we've enjoyed very much the food we've had so far. Last night we ate Asian cuisine at Dragonfish, just a block down the street. Asparagus beef, carmel ginger chicken, Jasmine rice -- it was all very tasty, and we managed to use chopsticks without flinging food everywhere. We had the leftovers for breakfast this morning (oh, Cara was very impressed that the restaurant labeled the to-go containers with the date).

After the bus ride, however, things were looking up. It was a short, four-block walk to our hotel, the Camlin.

Built in 1926 and recently (2005) remodeled, the hotel is across the street from the Washington State Convention Center and the Paramount Theater. We found everything very accessible to us, from dining to shopping to entertainment.

Well, we made it to Seattle! We're here to start off our summer vacation. Actually, Cara's just rounding out her summer vacation; she'll have to start school as sson as we return.