Day 5 afternoon, Juneau

We had been looking forward to our afternoon in Juneau for weeks. Arni, John's dad, had a former student who lived in Juneau. She and her husband owned a fishing boat, and gave fishing and whale watching tours during the summer months. They agreed to take us out for a fraction of the normal cost, and once we realized it would be sunny and warm that day...well, we knew we were in for a treat!

The boat was called "Fissues" and it didn't take us long once we were on board to spot whales. Picture 2 and 3 below clearly show the mama and baby whale we came across first. We learned that whales will surface three times (generally) where they arch their backs and you can see their fins. Once they take their third breath, then you will see them dive down deep. Once you see their tails come up you know it will be 5 minutes or so before you see them again, and by then they could be far away from you.

After we watched mama and baby into their deep dive, we turned around and headed for the good salmon fishing spots. But not before seeing another whale, even closer to our boat! He gave us a good show until he deep dove and was long gone!

So we settled in for fishing. It was so relaxing to just bob along the open water, it was about 60 degrees, sunny, and the air was so fresh it was intoxicating. Not long and Nina (John's mom) got a bite on her line! We reeled it in, and it was a flounder (picture #8). Since we weren't looking for flounder, and Nina felt pretty bad for disturbing it and piercing it's lip, we sent him back home. Hopefully he learned his lesson.

It was getting close to time to pack up, and we hadn't caught anything else. We noticed around 5 bald eagles in the trees around us, and had been watching their show for a while. So we tossed our extra bait, one by one into the water. WHOA! Almost immediately, the Eagles began sweeping in and picking the fish up out of the water. I mean almost immediately. Before we knew it, we had 9 Bald Eagles circling our boat above our heads. They would glide down so easily and grab the bait...close enough to touch (but we knew better). At one point, we threw a piece of bait out and an Eagle sailed in and grabbed the fish in mid-air, before it ever hit the water. Of course, no one got pictures so you'll just have to take my word for it!

As we were getting ready to head back in, we finally got another bite on Matt's line. He reeled in a gigantic (in my book) Wild Kind Salmon. It weighed 25 pounds, and we had no choice but to get him ready for dinner. The hook had caught him in an artery, so he wasn't going to make it...which was fine with Matt who had the fish filleted and sent back home for later consumption.

Of course that morning after Endicott Arm I realized my camera battery was doomed. Luckily Matt and Robin had two camera and they let us borrow their little point-and-shoot. So, most of these pics (especially whales and eagles) are Matt's. Some are from the disposable camera I purchased (high tech!). Luckily the next day, we were back to digital but I will never, ever forget our battery charger again!

Did I mention Day 5 (Juneau) was my favorite day?!

Day 5 Morning, Scenic Cruising

This was the beginning of my favorite day. We knew we needed to wake up early, that we'd be sailing through the Tracy Arm Fjord beginning at around 6 a.m. We weren't really sure what that meant, except that it was supposed to beautiful, there would be ice, and the mouth of a glacier involved.

So we got up at around 6:30 and saw waterfalls outside our window. We rushed to get ready, luckily we dressed warm. I had on fleece, my lined windbreaker (hey $9 S&B jacket!), a fleece stocking cap, gloves and thick socks with my shoes and I was still pretty cold!

Turns out the ice was pretty bad in Tracy Arm, we'd been warned by another cruise ship. So our captain made the decision to take us up to Endicott Arm. We stood on the deck all morning and awed in the beauty. I know it sounds cheesy, but all we said that morning was "wow" and "that's amazing" and "look at that" and "wow".

I was mostly amazed at how still the water was. Here was this gigantic cruise ship sailing through, countless waterfalls all over the sides of the valley, even seals and sea lions in the water, and yet it was as still as glass. We could see reflections of the mountains in the water, it seemed like we were on top of glass.

There were huge chunks of ice in the water, which had broken off from the glacier and floated along. We saw seals on top of the ice, and Bald Eagles watching us pass. Some ice chunks were white, some were the bright blue glacier water tends to be.

We got right up to the mouth of the glacier (3rd photo down) and then we turned around and sailed on out.

What a way to start your day!

Things that turn my day bad

Still haven't had a moment to update Day 5, Juneau. Which was my favorite day. Maybe later today I'll get that done.

In the meantime, I wanted to share a couple of pet peeves:

1) People who roll their eyes and say "I NEVER watch TV". Usually this follows me spending 3 full minutes listing off all the shows I DVR without taking a breath. I get the same annoying feeling when people say "we don't even have cable" and then look at me like I do crack and eat babies.

First of all, I only eat babies when they are chocolate dipped with sprinkles. Second of all, if you don't watch TV very often or you don't have cable, great for you! There are probably things you do that I don't (like camp or go to the lake or craft) and I don't hate on you. So don't hate on me. It's a luxury, but I never, ever apologize for enjoying a little (or a lot) of "What Not to Wear", "House Hunters", and an occasional ANTM.

Like I said, I think it's great if you don't watch TV or don't have cable....but don't hate on me and look at me with disgust because I do.

2) People who talk on their cell phones while peeing in a public restroom. Not even those who come into a public restroom for privacy (I know, irony, right?). But those that are crouched over a toilet, peeing while gabbing on about some girl in the office next door. Or, even worse, conducting business while peeing. Are we really that pressed for time? It's a public restroom, and I would like to pee in peace.

Maybe you can get away with no one hearing you pee over the phone (though Dean Blevins certainly couldn't) but how do you explain the flushing?

3) The phrase "baby bump". I don't know why...it's like the word nipple or motherboard or moist. Just creeps me out.

4) Paying $2.50 for a coke at a restaurant.

5) People who leave mean anonymous comments to an old blog post (or to any blog post) that make me have to block anonymous comments. And then, if it continues, I'll have to start monitoring all comments before posting. And if it comes to that, why even blog anymore?

Please don't leave mean comments. This blog is about me, it's for my friends and family, and I'm really sensitive and don't like mean comments. That's all I'm going to say about it.

Have a nice day!

Entertainment Tonight

For a break in the vacation play-by-play, I thought I would tell you what I missed in the entertainment world while I was gone. Big stuff.

Sidenote: You know it must be a slow news day if one of the top 4 stories on Yahoo and PEOPLE is that a Rascal Flatts guitarist had a baby...

Anyway, what I missed...

George Clooney broke up with someone else! (shocking, I know)
Clay Aiken is going to be a daddy! (no worries, not like he actually had sex to do it....ah, the marvels of modern fertility medicine. glad it worked for someone!)
Ashlee Simpson-Wentz is pregnant! (WHOA...couldn't see that one coming!)
Tatum O'Neal busted for cocaine! (um...who cares?)
"Sex and the City" opened in theatres! (can't wait to see it, it's my reward for this weekend)
Brangelina did not have their twins! (or so they say)
Nick Hogan wants out of jail! (wouldn't you?)
Heidi is ready to marry Spencer! (WHY?!)
Lindsay Lohan is making out with her BFF? (I don't even know what to say...)

And that my friends is all the fun I miss when I'm gone for a week. Think of it as your preview to the new PEOPLE magazine...

Day 4, Ketchikan

Tuesday (Day 4) was an early day. We arrived in Ketchikan, Alaska and headed off the ship pretty quickly because we had tickets for an 8a Lumberjack Show. It was a lot of fun, a little cheesy but who doesn't need some cheesy tourist stuff now and then? Actually, we laughed a lot and it really is amazing to see all of the stunts they pulled. Everything they did, lumberjacks actually had to do that (still do sometimes).

After the Lumberjack show, we walked around the very cute little town. Visited a couple of souvenir shops, mailed some postcards, and even stopped by the local candy shop for delicious chocolates.

Then we headed on the bus to our next excursion: Orca Beach Rainforest Adventure. Sounds exciting, huh? It was about 30 minutes to get to our boat (or raft...whatever you want to call it) to take us to Orca Beach. Southeast Alaska is just a bunch of islands. Most major cities including most of the ones we went to) are not accessible by car--it takes a boat or a plane so you see A LOT of those!

Remember how I bought way cute $9 Wellies at Steve & Barry's before leaving? You know, because it rains A LOT and I didn't want cold, wet feet? Well we happened to arrive in Alaska on their 7th day of sunshine. 7 straight days of sunshine (9 days by the time we left) in a place where it rains, on average, 330 days a year. I still think the $9 was a good investment because it was supposed to rain!

Anyway, the forecast still called for late afternoon rain. So, we decided to don the complimentary rain gear they provide. It was awesome...how "Deadliest Catch" do I look? John refused to wear the purple pants with his outfit, and it was pulling teeth to get him to even put on the jacket. Well, we didn't need the pants but the jacket came in handy since we were heading out in a Banana Boat. It's basically a glorified inflatable raft with a motor. We got quite a bit of spray from the 5-8 foot waves!

Once we arrived on Orca Beach we were able to take a leisurely stroll through the rainforest. We learned a lot about trees, but the only wildlife we saw was a nasty, giant white slug!
But it was beautiful there, and so peaceful. The sun made everything just right.

After that, we were beat. And starving. It had been WAY more than 16 minutes since we ate last, so we got back on the ship and ate. I'm pretty sure that day I had a hamburger, hot dog, crack fries, pizza, AND ice cream for dessert. It was delicious.

Dinner was a mere 4 hours later!

Day Two and Three, Embarkation and Sea Day

Sunday morning we woke up (well, John was up and about VERY early, I took the opportunity to sleep in) and headed to Top Pot Doughnuts for breakfast. This is the very delicious shop that provides the doughnuts for Starbucks. John had decided to take a vacation from his "no sweets" commitment, and the doughnuts were the first taste of sugar for him in nearly 6 months!

Then we packed up and headed on over to the boat. Luckily they were letting people on a little early, so we were some of the first people on board. It was SO beautiful. And big. It's one of the largest cruise ships in operation, so we spent quite a bit of time exploring and finding our way around.

We ate lunch at the buffet (24 hour buffet), and Robin and I took a tour of the Lotus Spa. Robin booked a massage for that afternoon, and I went ahead and booked mine for the next day.

Our first dinner on the ship was pretty great. There were the maple glazed carrots I almost mistook for dessert they were so good. And then we could order as many appetizers and desserts and pretty much anything we wanted.

We attended the after-dinner show, and heard a pretty funny comedian Phil Tag who provided us some funny quotes for the rest of the week.

----------------

The next morning we slept in (lots of sleeping and eating...it's a recurring theme). I spent most of the day in the Skywalker's Lounge reading and whale watching. I was in luck...I saw whales every day of the trip!

That afternoon I had my spa treatment scheduled. I decided on a seaweed wrap and massage. Let me tell you, it doesn't get much better than being slathered in green seaweed goop, wrapped up like a burrito in foil, covered in blankets and lounging in a warm waterbed before a steamy shower and a back and shoulder massage. It was 90 minutes of utter bliss...very expensive, but worth it! When in Rome, right?

It was formal night for dinner, but we'd decided not to pack all the suits and heels and dresses it would take and we ate in a different dining room. Headed on to bed to get ready for an EARLY morning in Ketchikan, Alaska on Tuesday.

Day One, Seattle

Day 1 began early on Saturday as we drove to Dallas for our flight. We had a great flight (on time and everything) on Alaska Airlines, which has overtaken Frontier for my new favorite airline.

Once we arrived at our hotel (see below for THAT story), we headed out to eat. We were starving and still had daylight to see the town. We headed down to Pike Place market, where we shopped and saw the (empty) fish market.

Then we ate at The Crab Pot and I realized it was going to be a VERY good week. The seafood (served broil style) was delicious. I ate a little too much and almost got sick on the walk back!

We finished the evening with creme brulee in the hotel restaurant. We planned to sleep in the next day and take it easy before embarkation...

WARNING! The Hotel in Seattle

Well, normally I would wrap this up within the Day 1 - Seattle post. However, it deserves it's own post.

WARNING: this is not appropriate for work. Not appropriate at all, actually. I should call this hotel the hotel we're too midwestern/southern/Bible-totin' to stay at.

We knew it was pretty swanky, but we got a great deal on it with our flight. We decided to fly in the day before the ship left and stay the night in Seattle. More on that later. However, I should have known that the hotel was a little much for us when we walked in and saw "the painting". Sorry, I didn't catch the name of the painting or the artist because I was rather distracted by the nipples and the man's head in her lap.

That was the FIRST thing we saw. Matt and John were in hog heaven...they literally couldn't spit out inappropriate comments and frat boy snickers fast enough. I was just glad they had someone to share it with...Robin and I were not impressed.

Once we arrived in our (very nice) room, we noticed a few things. Number one, there was no Bible on the side table. Instead there was a "Spiritual Menu". You could order such items as the Torah, the Koran, the Bible, the Book of Morman, the Buddhist Bible, and the Book on Scientology. And even some others I hadn't heard of. Your choice, they would deliver it to your room. We didn't order any, but looking back we should have asked for the Torah as the cruise ship was looking for a passenger to conduct Sabbath Eve services and John was interested in hosting.

Kidding, people, chuckle chuckle.

Anyway, we kept looking around for other things we'd never heard of in a hotel before, like a pillow menu (awesome). Then we hit the motherload. Under the TV was a tray of everything you needed for an intimate evening. Bottle of wine, two wine glasses, a flashlight, a bottle opener, an intimacy kit and the Mini-Max (your pleasure is our pleasure).

The disturbing thing was that the box for the Mini-Max had been opened several times and there were several seals stuck on top of each other. I didn't want to know if people had just been curious and taken a looksie or had used and passed on....didn't want to know. Anyway I hear that someone (not us, honestly) opened it to see and it apparently was a hot pink....personal assistant if you get what I'm saying. Of COURSE I took pictures, but they didn't come out very well.

There was also an intimacy kit with 2 condoms, 2 obstetrical towels, and a package of lubricant (I warned you at the beginning...I'm just reporting facts here). Oh, the laughs just kept on the rest of the evening!

I think all there really is to say is that it was just a little too much for us!

Sail Away Home

We're back! I was smarter this time than I was last month in Hawaii. I took the day off to recover. John and I rested after a day of nonstop traveling (boat in the morning, bus to the airport, 4-hour flight, 3-hour car ride), got some laundry done, caught up on DVR, ate Mexican food (how I missed you, Dos Gabacho's), and now blogged!

The trip was A-MAZ-ING. It was sunny and cool and not humid and beautiful and relaxing and gluttonous and so fun. Everytime I looked out the window or felt the spray of the ocean on my face I had to pinch myself. I couldn't believe I was there, looking at these amazing mountains and wildlife.

What I loved about the trip:

-no computer

-no cell phone service

-the rocking of the boat that made me sleepy

-reading on the deck with the mountains in the background

-watching whales

-spotting Bald Eagles (or Bald Seagulls as they're sometimes called, they're so common in Alaska)

-cool weather

-warm sunshine

-glaciers

-seafood: lobster, crab, shrimp galore

-5-course meals every night

-ordering 2-3 desserts with each meal

-massage and seaweed wrap

-Alaska Airlines

-the same waiter each night

-crack fries (really, really good french fries)

-salmon fishing (and catching!)

-whale watching

-dressing up like "Deadliest Catch" (for nothing, really, it didn't rain!)

-time with the in-laws (no, really, it was great! I'm lucky John has an awesome family...it's a redeeming quality in him!)

-limited TV which made me get out and read more!

-winning $75 in Bingo

-being recognized in Victoria, Canada as "jackpot winner" from Bingo

-someone making and turning down my bed every day and leaving chocolates on the pillow each night

Things I hated about the trip:

-forgetting the digital camera charger, so the camera conked out halfway through

-using a disposable camera (thanks M and R for loaning us your extra digital!)-John saying "welcome to Canada, ay" 500 times in a 5-minute period (it was funny at first!)

-coming home

More to come...including some commentary on the swanky hotel we stayed at in Seattle and their "personal intimacy kits" they left for their clients. Including a small box labeled "Mini Max". Yes, it's what you think it is!!!!

And, of course, pictures to come!