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Wednesday Hodgepodge #61

Posted on January 11, 2012 by auburnchick

You’ve just gotta love the random questions that Joyce comes up with each week!  Play along by posting your own answers, linking up with Joyce, then visiting other bloggers to see how they answered.

1.  Lake Superior University has once again published a list of words/phrases they think should be banished from the Queen’s English in 2012 –amazing, baby bump, shared sacrifice, occupy, blowback, man cave, the new normal, pet parent, win the future, trickeration, ginormous, and thank you in advance.  Which of these words/phrases would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why? Go here to read more about how the words are chosen.

Well, without knowing the definition for this, I’d have to say that blowback can go back to where it originated from.  It sounds icky even to say, so what’s the point?  I love the terms man cave and baby bump…such visual words!!

2.  Are you easily embarrassed?

Hmmm…interesting question.  I am somewhat self-conscious, but I can’t say that I get embarrassed easily any more.  I’m starting to grow into my skin…finally, after almost 41 years.

3.  What is your go-to snack?

I’m not much of a snacker any more.  If I have a choice, though, I love chips and salsa or fresh hummus.  Yum!

4.  Have you ever been to Washington D.C.? If not do you have any desire to go? What site/attraction would you most want to see in that city? If you have been, what’s your favorite site/attraction?

I’ve visited Washington, D.C. twice.  I was eight or nine years old the first time.  My family had driven from Colorado to Washington, D.C.  Yeah, a long trip.  My stepfather had to attend a business conference, so we signed up for an organized tour.  I’ll never forget the blisters I got from all of the walking we did that day.  However, I believe that my love of history began growing with that trip.  The Smithsonian was incredibly overwhelming yet fascinating at the same time.  Mount Vernon was so much fun.  The Lincoln Memorial was awe-inspiring (Lincoln was an incredibly brave man, IMHO).  However, it was my visit to Arlington Cemetery that was the most memorable and sobering.  My mom, Super Sis, and I quietly observed the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The second time I visited D.C. was when Chicky was in the sixth grade.  We flew up for a soccer tournament.  We stayed in Manassas, VA, and got to visit the site of the Battle of Bull Run.  Oh, to stand on the ground where brother fought against brother.  There is a statue of Stonewall Jackson at that site, and I had just finished reading a book about him.  He was a charismatic Christian man who, I’m sure, is dancing in heaven right now.  I just had to have my picture taken in front of that statue.

I would love to go back to D.C. again and spend more time in such places as the Smithsonian.  I also want to see the Vietnam Memorial.  I’ve only seen a small replica that visited Podunk, USA a couple of years ago.

5.  Sit ups-planks-lunges-squats…which do you hate the least?

I’d have to say that I hate squats the least.  I really enjoyed the years I spent taking the kids to school and then working out at the gym.  I had buns of steel (LOL) which meant lots and lots and lots of lunges and squats.  Planks…not my favorite.  I don’t have a lot of core strength, so these are difficult for me.

6.  What’s a small act of kindness you were shown that you’ve never forgotten?

Just one, Joyce?  I really don’t know how to answer this.  Almost daily, I am the recipient of small acts of kindness, whether it’s a smile from a student walking down a hallway or a bundle of flowers from a friend.

As I was typing the above, though, I recalled an incident that will always sit at the top of my list of acts of kindness.

In April 2001, my father unexpectedly passed away.  I’ve blogged about this before, but I’ll give you the gist of it in case you’re not a regular reader.

My father was a very healthy man and was training for a triathlon when, while on a bike ride, he fell over, dying instantly of what was later determined to be a brain aneurism.  I got the phone call that night and was devastated.

My parents had gotten divorced when I was very young, and I only got to see my dad a couple of times between the divorce and the age of 24, when we reconnected after Rooster’s birth.  It had taken years to repair and rebuild the relationship.

My dad was a quirky Frenchman who had lived in Texas for quite a while.  As a result, he had a French accent with a touch of Southern twang.  It was quite the combination.

He surprised me on my 25th birthday, flying into town with the most beautiful, fancy, Food Network-worthy chocolate raspberry cake that a friend had made especially for me and that had managed to stay intact during the flight.

Our time together was too short.

The morning after his death, I had to break the news to my children, who were in elementary school at the time.

It was not an easy task, and I cried a lot.

Chicky left the room and went upstairs.  When she came back, she had a package for me.  When I unwrapped it, it was a framed picture that my dad had given her.  She told me that she wanted me to have it so I could always remember him.

This was the most unselfish thing a person has ever done for me and coming from a child who sensed the depth of my grief…well, you can only imagine how touched I was.

7.  Have you ever been a blood donor?

No, I have never donated blood.  I do not weigh enough.  I have a huge fear of needles and get light-headed when I get blood drawn.  My weight provides a convenient excuse to avoid the guilt of not donating blood.

8.  My Random Thought

Super Sis turned 39 on Monday.  Yes, she’s really 39 and not just holding.  When I was at her house during Christmas, I had left her gift with my older nephew, who tucked it away in a super-secret location.  He remembered to get the gift out.  She texted me her thanks along with pictures…

I found the bracelet at Kohl’s.  It’s a sister bracelet with some sort of gem in it.  I wasn’t sure if she would like it.  Her picture tells the story…

She’s a gal who likes simple things.  The bracelet goes with her style perfectly!

Happy Birthday, Super Sis!  You’re a blessing to me and to everyone who is fortunate enough to cross paths with you.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , | 8 Comments »

Day 9 – The Return Home

Posted on July 21, 2011 by auburnchick

Well, Day 9 was bittersweet.

It was time to return home.

We headed back to the airport which, by the way, had a fabulous book store and lots of places to eat.

I was more interested in finding Kleenex because I had picked up a cold the last couple of days on the cruise, and the snot was pouring from my nose.

Disgusting, I know, but the truth just the same.

I did quite a bit of knitting on the flight to Tennessee.  For some reason, I forgot to take pictures though.

One annoying thing on the plane…obnoxious children.

Well, it wasn’t that the children were obnoxious.  They were just being kids.  It was the parent of the children who allowed the kids to hang over the back of their seats and yell.

Grrr.

Meanwhile, a family sitting behind me had several children of their own, and they were the most well-behaved kids I’ve seen…especially given that they had already endured a drive of several hours just to get to Seattle and fly across the country.  They were adorable.

We had a short layover in Nashville.  I managed to knit a few rounds of my sock, this time taking a picture…

Soon, it was time to board our connecting flight.  The ride to Podunk, USA was short, but the views out of the window were just as gorgeous as ever…

Ok, so it was a little foggy in places.  But, when the fog cleared…oooh laaa laaa…

As we flew over the beach, we saw the shoreline, which was an amazing sight from the air.

Of course, I didn’t take a picture.  I think I was just about burned out from picture taking.

After landing, and while we were waiting for our bags, we heard Chicky’s name called out over the PA system.

Apparently, she’d left her backpack, with the Mr.’s laptop, on the plane.

Fortunately, this was Podunk, USA…a small place.

She retrieved the backpack, a little embarrassed.

Soon, the bags had been collected, and we had a joyous reunion with Dancing Girl, her father, and Guy Friend, who had come to pick us up.

It was late.

We were all tired.

Coupon Queen, Grand Pooba, and Super Sis’s family still had to drive a couple of hours to their home.

Fortunately, my family was already home.

Yay for new, bigger airports!

Pele and Aubie were so glad to see us when we got home.  Guy Friend had taken care of them and the house while we had been gone.

I had boarded Molly, poor baby.

She was incredibly happy to see me when I picked her up the next day…

Molly came home very appreciative of her family.  She’d been boarded for eleven nights…the longest ever.  I think she thought she’d been given up.  Poor thing.  We’ve been giving her a lot of extra love since we got back.

All in all, it had been a wonderful vacation.

We would have never been able to have such a wonderful adventure if it had not been for the extreme generosity of Coupon Queen and Grand Pooba, who financed the entire trip (sans the souvenirs we bought ourselves).

So, I want to extend a HUGE thank you to these wonderful in-laws of mine.  I will forever be grateful for the lifelong memories that we created during this trip.

Filed under: Vacation | Tagged: , | 3 Comments »

Day 8 – Seattle

Posted on July 20, 2011 by auburnchick

Day 8 of the Great Adventure started off on the Lido Deck with the last breakfast of the cruise, where I took a picture of my last look at the harbor…

Debarking is always a sad thing, let me tell you.  After being pampered for seven nights, I was not ready to reenter life on land.

One of the worst parts about leaving the ship is finding your luggage and lugging it out.  It’s ironic how we were offered all kinds of help when we were getting ready to board the ship, but the staff pretty much gives you the boot when you leave and wishes you good luck as you go out…sans assistance.

LOL

We made our way to our prearranged shuttle and got deposited at the same hotel we had stayed at a week before.

After checking in, we prepared ourselves for another day of adventures.

Coupon Queen had wisely chosen the hotel’s location…within walking distance of the Light Rail, one of Seattle’s mass transportation systems.

We had to ride the entire length, which had about thirteen stops.

After a short duration of thirty minutes, we were deposited in the heart of Seattle.

We were ready to explore!

We really wanted to visit the Pike Street Market, which we had heard great things about…

Pike Street Market is a conglomeration of food stalls.

Remember that I hail from Podunk, USA, where the only market I see is Publix.

Hearing vendors hawk their wears was an interesting experience…

The next picture is the view of the market from the lower street level.  You’ll notice that the building says “Sanitary Public Market.”  I read a sign inside that explained that this building was named such because back in the day when it was first built, shoppers were not allowed to take their horses inside the building, thus making it sanitary.

What amazed me about this market is that you could find almost anything you wanted…

The market really does cater to the melting pot population of Seattle.

We visited the fish market, where we waited for the guys to throw the fish, as we’ve seen done on TV.  The guys put on a great show, let me tell you!

The market opens up into the street, where vendors sell their wares under tents…

The main thing that Rooster and I wanted to do was visit the first Starbucks, which was opened in Seattle in 1971.

Thanks to a fancy phone with GPS, Rooster found it…right in the heart of the market…

This is a busy place, let me tell you!  The line stretched out the door, but we didn’t mind waiting.

We had entertainment…

The original Starbucks is very stripped down inside, unlike the newest franchises…

I was surprised at how small this Starbucks was.  There were no tables to sit at.  I saw this plaque as the line moved forward…

And this…

Rooster, Chicky, my nephews Music Man and Dr. J, and myself waited, placing our orders when it was time.

This was the second time that I splurged during this trip, ordering a Chocolate Coconut Creme Frappuccino…

This drink was recommended by the lovely young lady who waited on me, and she did not steer me wrong.  It was smooth as silk.  The coconut gave it the summery/vacation taste that was just right for this trip.

Let me take a moment to talk about the staff who man this store.

They were, quite simply, amazing.  They were so patient and extremely helpful.  I did not see a single person who wasn’t smiling.  One would think that it would be difficult to keep up the pace day in and day out given the crowds that pour through the door.  Not so!  I was highly impressed!

Of course, I couldn’t leave without getting a permanent souvenir…

I love the back of the cup…

When I exited the Starbucks, Grand Pooba had a surprise for me.  While we had been inside, waiting to be served, the rest of the family had walked down the street, and Pooba has found this sign…

Oh my word.

YARN!!

I was eager to find the store, but first I had to walk up this huge hill…

Here’s the view looking down…

While everyone else shopped, I went looking for the yarn store.  Super Sis was so great and offered to accompany me.  She doesn’t even knit, but she was willing to support me in my love for all things fiber.

We wound up having a mini adventure of our own as we happened upon a film crew working on a scene for a movie…

No, that’s not Brad Pitt.  It was actually a dummy set up for the stunt.  But, more on that later.

We were on a mission – to find yarn.

And find it we did.

So Much Yarn really lived up to its name, let me tell you.  My peek in the door proved that…

Of course, a peek was not enough.

In we went…ready to play with yarn!

The store has three rooms.  The yarn is organized by gauge, beginning with the lace weight yarn and working into the heavier yarn as you make your way through the store.

Super Sis asked me a few questions about yarn and then found a comfy chair to sit in while I mused about what to purchase, because you know I HAD to purchase something!

I decided not to go overboard and purchased this…

That is Happy Feet.  I chose the color because it reminded me of autumn.  They’re going to be a lovely pair of socks one day!!

Super Sis and I made our way back to our family, passing the site of the film shoot, where the stunt had just been performed, and the dummy had met up with a bus…

It was interesting to see all of the extra people involved with this.

As we made our way up the hill, we got a better view of the dummy and the “blood” that was running down the street.  In fact, I even heard someone say, “Hey, clean up the blood.”  LOL

The blood was everywhere, including the bus’s windshield…

This area of Seattle has some great shopping, let me tell you.  There were a lot of people enjoying the wonderful weather too.  As I walked, I saw the sign for the market and couldn’t resist taking another picture of it…

The next picture is of Dr. J, Super Sis, and Super D.  I don’t know why, but I just love this picture.  Rooster is walking in front of them, and Music Man is in front of Rooster…

We saw street performers…

Isn’t that dog just the cutest thing?

We saw more Starbucks stores…

After a few hours, Coupon Queen and Grand Pooba were pooped, so they decided to ride the Light Rail back to the hotel.  Super Sis and her family decided to see a movie.  My crew decided to continue shopping and then grab dinner.

We headed into the large mall that is in the center of Seattle…

Rooster and the Mr. got tired, but we still had an hour to kill before dinner, so while they sat in the mall, Chicky and I headed back out to look around.  I was still in awe of the tall buildings and the number of people out and about…

An Ann Taylor Loft store was directly in our path.

Darn.  I just hate that…my new favorite store and all.

We soon tired of the hefty price tags and headed back to the mall and our chosen restaurant for dinner…

We had a good time during dinner, with everyone selecting appetizers to eat as dinner.  That was all we were hungry for.

As we chatted, we discussed ideas for our next vacation and agreed to start saving our money.

After dinner, we hopped on the Light Rail and headed back to the hotel.  It had been a full day, and we had one more day of travel ahead of us.

Filed under: Vacation | Tagged: , , , | 3 Comments »

Day 7 – Victoria

Posted on July 19, 2011 by auburnchick

Day 7 of The Great Adventure found us on our way to Victoria, British Columbia (i.e. Canada).

We weren’t going to be pulling in until the early evening hours, so we had all day on the ship to play.

I spent a lot of time in the Crow’s Nest, checking out the scenery through the large windows.  I saw the Princess ship.  You might remember that this ship was, for the most part, our companion during the week…

For lunch, we had been invited to the dining room to a specially-prepared fare for frequent cruisers.

I loved the view from the dining room…

We were greeted with glasses of champagne and specially-designed tiles (which will make great coasters)…

The menu was fancy and not vegan friendly.  I settled for the salad, minus the meat on top.  I passed on dessert; however, the dining room steward brought me a lovely plate of dessert.

After lunch, we headed back to the Crow’s Nest to await Team Trivia.

I took a few more pictures.

After a while, I caught my first glimpse of Victoria, British Columbia, the final stop for the Westerdam…

After trivia, we headed to our room to pack.  We were going to be in port most of the evening, and we had to make sure we got our suitcases in the hallway before midnight.

Packing was not fun, let me tell you.

Imagine four people in a room the size of a closet, trying to cram a gagillion souvenirs and two large bags of dirty clothes into the suitcases they came on ship with.

Not easy.

We grumped at each other for the first ten or fifteen minutes before settling in and getting things done.

Then, we headed to dinner.  I had the fruit dish as an appetizer…

The dining room’s large windows provided such a great view of the setting sun…

I watched this small boat accompany the ship’s entry into port…

The Princess was pulling to port as well…

We hurriedly ate dinner, eager to get on with the business of touring Victoria.

Now, I’ve gotta tell you that my children had been eagerly awaiting the moment when Super Sis and I would be stepping on Canadian soil.  It had, after all, been at least 25 years since we had visited our “homeland.”

Chicky took a picture of us stepping off the ship.

I can’t show you this picture because 1) It shows our faces but most importantly 2) My eyes look like some lunatic’s.

If you’re one of my Facebook buds, you can testify to both points.

I can, however, show you the picture of us (or rather me since I cropped out Super Sis’s head, which showed her face a bit) kissing Canadian concrete…

Folks, this is what happens when you cross a Redneck who loves NASCAR with worldwide traveling adventures…

We saw this sign as we entered customs…

I felt a pull of my heart strings.  I know it sounds strange because I’ve spent most of my life in the United States; however, my Canadian roots go deep.  My grandpa had a farm, and he had maple trees on that farm.  One year when he came down to visit us in Alabama when I was a youngster, he brought us original maple syrup…not the Aunt Jemima kind.  I remember how different it tasted.  As an adult, I now appreciate how authentic that syrup was.

I felt a few tears well up in my eyes.  I was, indeed, back in my “homeland,” setting all of Chicky and Rooster’s jokes aside.

This sign forewarned us that the American dollar wouldn’t go quite as far in Canada…

As we began our nearly 1.5 mile walk downtown, I saw this horse-drawn tram…

Our walk took us through a residential area.  The gardens we passed were lovely, with such beauties as this…

The residential area opened up to a beautiful harbor with large hotels surrounding it…

We walked past the Parliament Building…an immense, ornate piece of architecture…

The boats in the harbor reminded me of Florida…

I don’t know if you can see, but the flowers in the lawn spell out “Welcome to Victoria.”

The next picture is of the Empress Hotel, a famous hotel that opened its doors in 1908 and is known for its traditional Afternoon Tea…

Street performers were out in full force…

I don’t know what the next building was, but I just knew that it was BIG.  Podunk, USA doesn’t have big buildings like this…

It was so neat to be able to walk down the store-lined street…another new experience for a Redneck like me…

We spent a longggggg time shopping.

I had not seen yarn up to this point, but I was on high alert.

Folks, yarn called out to me like a siren, I kid you not.  I was minding my own business when I turned me head to look in a completely different direction from that in which we were headed.

I spied this sign…all the way from the corner down the street…

…And I went running…

…Only to discover that the store had been closed for three hours.  I had to make do with looking through the window…

Look at that glorious yarn.

It could have been mine.

Sigh.

I’m sure the store keepers had to clean up a lot of drool I left behind.

Sigh.

Victoria was a WONDERFUL place to shop.  Sure, there were your “touristy” stores, but there were also a lot of unique stores.

I found a cute little tea shop that sold a wide variety of teapots and other tea making devices.  I didn’t buy anything, though, and kicked myself later when the Mr. told me I should have.  Why do guys always tell you it’s okay to buy something AFTER you’ve walked away.  Hmmm.

Eventually, we had to begin our walk back.  The buildings around the harbor were lit up in white lights and presented a lovely panorama…

We popped into the Empress Hotel for a closer look, but we didn’t get past the lobby since we didn’t actually have rooms there…

The Parliament Building at street level was even more impressive after dark…

The harbor was gorgeous at sunset…

One last glance at the Empress Hotel…

As we neared the port and our ship, I got this terrific picture of the moon’s reflection on the water…

Ships were beckoning their passengers back.  The Princess is the ship on the left, and the Westerdam is on the right…

After a late night snack on the Lido Deck, I headed to bed, taking another look at my souvenir from the day…

It had been a wonderful day.  I was a little sad that the journey was nearly over…until I remembered that we still had another day of adventures planned…

Filed under: Vacation | Tagged: , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Day 6 – Ketchikan

Posted on July 18, 2011 by auburnchick

Day 6 of The Great Adventure found us in port at Ketchikan, Alaska…

Although it wasn’t rainy, it was a little breezy and cold!

We left the ship as soon as we were allowed to because we had signed up for an early excursion…the Lumberjack Show!

We got great seats…first row, lower level, so we had a great view!

The show got started on time, and the emcee explained that we, the audience, would be divided into two groups.  One would root for the “American” lumberjacks competing in the show, and the other group would be cheering for the “Canadians.”

My family fell in the Canadian half of the audience, which was perfect because Super Sis and I used to be Canadian before we became naturalized citizens.

First up was the log splitting contest…

That was our guy, and he had mad log splitting skills, winning easily!

The day’s competition consisted of several contests, so just because a side would win one contest did not mean that the other side was done for.  There were many opportunities to tie the score.

The next contest was axe throwing, during which the guys threw axes at a bulls eye.

The American guy was amazing, hitting the center on his practice and “real” throws…

Here’s a close-up, which shows just how much effort it takes to throw that axe…

Next up was the sawing contest.  Our dudes rocked!

 

The next contest was another log splitting contest, from a different angle though…

Dude was a beast, winning easily!

So, the next contest involved the lumberjacks rolling logs over an obstacle, taking a hose and running somewhere with it (attaching it to another log, I think), and then crossing the log that ran over the pool of water.  The teams worked as pairs, with one guy doing one part, and the other guy doing the second part.

We fell a little behind, but just as our guys were catching up, one fell down, and the Americans won.

On to the next competition!

The guys had to balance themselves on a thin, wooden stand-like thing that had been stuck in the middle of a stump while splitting a log…

What a strong guy!  He won!

Next was something of an interlude/comedy routine.  This guy was supposed to be carving out a bunny…using a chain saw (is that what the gas powered saw is called?).

He didn’t exactly carve the bunny but, instead, a small chair, which he gave to an adorable little girl pulled from the audience…

It was time to return to the contests!

Next up was the pole climbing challenge…

Those guys scurried up those poles very quickly, and once again, the Canadian side scored a victory!

Next up was the log running contest.  What fun to watch those guys try to avoid falling into the water!

By this time, both groups were tied, so everything boiled down to the final contest…log rolling!

I’ve watched these types of contests on TV, but seeing them in person was so much more fun!

It was best of three.

It was easy to see that the guys were enjoying it as much as the audience was…

The guy on the right is the current collegiate champion, which made it no surprise when our guy went down…

Time for try #2.  I was amazed by how quickly these guys could move their feet!

Our side won the second log rolling contest.  It was time for the tie breaker!  The crowd was urged to make some noise.  We did!

The guys steadied themselves and then got to it…

College boy goes down!  The emcee’s face in the background is priceless!

Dawson’s Creek (the Canadians) won!

Yo Ho!!  (what we were taught to yell throughout the competition)

The show was over.  It was now time to shop!

Oh yes.  The cruiseline-owned jewelry stores were hungry vultures…awaiting our arrival.

Let me explain how things work.

See, when you get off the ship, you get these little booklets with coupons for “free” charms just for visiting stores.

Well, what the coupons don’t tell you is that once you enter the stores, you’re lucky if you can escape, with the charms in your pockets.

The charms are used as lures to get people in for, as everyone knows, it’s hard to pass up something that’s free.

A couple of the stores’ employees were nice and handed over the goods without harassing us.

Some, however, were not so nice.

Coupon Queen wound up trying on a thousand dollar ring…for one stinking little charm.

The employee tried to get me to look as sapphires.

Ha!  I told the guy that I’m a teacher at a small private school.  I can’t afford “real” jewelry.

He didn’t care.

Rooster and I went into a different store to pick up a free pair of pearl earrings.

I handed over my coupon and had no problem.  When Rooster tried to get his pair, the guy told him that the offer was one pair per group.

I explained that we were entering as two different groups.  Technically, we were traveling with three families.

Plus, this was a cheap pair of earrings.

Give me a break.

Then, the guy said that the coupon was for ladies only.

Rooster told him that he was giving the earrings to a girl.

The guy didn’t care.

I told the man that the coupon did not state that you had to be a female to get the earrings.

The guy did not care.

Rooster said, “Fine.  I’ll go find a girl,” and he walked out of the store…only to run into Chicky, who was making her way in.

He grabbed her, gave her the coupon, and went back to the employee, who handed Chicky the earrings.

Chicky had no idea what was going on, and she turned to Rooster, shrugging her shoulders, and said, “Here.  I already have several pairs of pearl earrings.”

It was priceless and served that guy right.  I would never buy jewelry from rude store employees.  I realize we were tourists, but we could have had our pockets lined with money.

Ok.  Rant is over.

Ketchikan was beautiful, but I was not enamored with its touristy stores.  Very little, if anything, was locally made, and that was disappointing.

The scenery, however, was jaw dropping…

We walked to the wharf, which was a collection of waterfront stores.  Back in the day, sailors used to come into port and visit these houses for female “companionship.”

I really enjoyed looking around in these shops.  Sure, they contained a lot of mass produced items, but these stores were cozy and warm.

Dolly’s is the most famous “establishment” on the wharf…

The scenery here was simply gorgeous…

Back out on the street, we saw a guy who had rescued an eagle and a couple of owls that had been injured and could no longer fly…

In the next picture, you’ll see another owl.  It was actually a tiny thing…so adorable!

As with Sitka, the foliage was green because of all of the rain the area gets…

We only had four hours in port, and we shopped every minute, let me tell you.  Our feet hurt like crazy by the time we boarded the ship and ate lunch.

There were quite a few other ships visiting Ketchikan that day…

I took a few pictures from the Lido Deck…

I watched more sea planes land…

I admired the new shoes I had picked up in Ketchikan…

Yes, friends, I got my moccasins!!  These are moose skin (don’t be a hater) and are oh so soft.

After lunch, Coupon Queen, Super Sis, and I headed for the Indonesian Tea Ceremony.

Although we had expected something ceremonial, it was, in fact, just tea with goodies…

The tables in the dining room were set beautifully, and both men and women attendees were presented with menus…

Dining room stewards brought trays of goodies around.  I was a good girl and passed up on all of them; however, Super Sis and Coupon Queen indulged.  The next picture is of Super Sis’s plate…

I was satisfied with my cup of tea…

I had some time between tea and dinner, so I visited the Observation Deck and managed to get a great picture of the sun’s reflection on the ocean…

During dinner we were treated to a farewell show by the dining room stewards.  The next night would see many of the ship’s passengers in port, so it was the last chance to get everyone together.  Diners swung our napkins in the air in support of the entertainment…

I love the next photo.  This young man seemed to be having a great time.  These ladies and gentlemen spend upwards of ten months on the ship…far away from home.  It is not an easy life for them.

Dinner was delicious. My appetizer was grilled asparagus and some kind of mushroom thing, drizzled with a balsamic vinaigrette…

When we were presented with the dessert menu, I knew that it was time for me to break my fast from sugar (aside from the sweet tea I’d begun drinking in June), so I ordered the Flourless Chocolate Cake, a favorite of mine from the previous cruises I’ve been on…

What is is like to eat dessert after six months of not having it?

Please allow me to describe the experience.

When I put the first bite into my mouth, it was as if I were in a car going through one of those car washes where the water jets shoot water from both sides.

My salivary glands went into overdrive.

I had to eat very slowly.  The cake was decadent…very rich and sweet.

Up to this point, fruits and vegetables had been my “desserts.”

I did a good job, nearly cleaning my plate…

As we sat around and savored the quiet moments of our dessert time (the kids had left to watch a movie, I think), I took snapshots of the fresh flowers that adorned the tables…

After dinner, Super Sis, Super D, and I visited the Crow’s Nest, where we opened one of the complimentary bottles of champagne we had found in our rooms when we had boarded the ship.  There was a fancy party going on, and part of the deck was roped off.  One of the servers brought us three glasses, and when one of the ship’s officers saw Super D inspecting the glass, he snatched it up, apologized for it not being perfectly clean (it was, by the way), and brought us a complimentary appetizer from the party.  Holland America really works hard to keep passengers happy, and we were impressed yet again.

As you can see from the picture below, the glass was obviously just fine.

Next, we headed outside to capture a few sunset photos…

Look at the sun’s rays in the next photo…

Why is it that I never grow tired of the sunset?  It’s simply divine!

Most digital camera have the option to change scene settings.  By changing the scene to “Sunset,” I was able to get the following pictures (note the different hues)…

Super D has the same camera that I do, and throughout the cruise, he enjoyed taking pictures as well…

Super Sis sat on the deck and watched us do our thing, enjoying the sunset as well…

Later that evening, the family headed down to the Queen’s Lounge to watch the gameshow “Liar’s Club,” put on by the cruise director, the comedian entertainer, one of the singers, and another ship employee.

Basically, the “contestants” were presented with a very unique word, and they had to define the word for us, the audience.  Only one of them was correct, and we had to guess who it was.

The first word went off without a hitch.

Then the second word was presented, and I knew we were in trouble.  I don’t remember which word it was, but it was sexual sounding, and so you can imagine the explanations that were coming out of the contestants’ mouths.

It was too much for me.  I was appalled.  There were children in the audience.  My youngest nephew is twelve years old, and he, along with Rooster and Music Man, both 17, really should not have been listening to that kind of stuff.

I walked out before the gameshow was over.

I went back to my room to get ready for bed.  I found this towel animal…

Day 7 promised to be a busy one, and I needed all of the rest I could get!

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Day 5 – Sitka

Posted on July 17, 2011 by auburnchick

I woke up on Day 5 of The Great Adventure to discover that the ship was nearing its next destination…Sitka, Alaska.

The view from the Lido Deck provided these picturesque scenes…

This area is dotted with small islands, and houses are tucked in here and there…

I think that I saw a small lighthouse…

I saw a long bridge, which I believe takes residents into “town…”

Sitka is a coastal town, as evidenced by the row of houses and businesses that line the shore…

We had to take a tender to reach the shore from the ship.  The ride lasted about ten minutes as we waited for our driver to back into a “parking spot” at the dock.  From there, we had a good view of the shops that awaited us…

Sitka is a very old town, originally settled by the Tlingit Indians.  Eventually, it came under Russian rule before Alaska was purchased by the U.S.

So, it has a rich history, and the shops and other sights really reflected this.

We hopped in the first store we saw.  It actually turned out to be a large building with a collection of stores and bathrooms (very important when you’re on vacation).

This was the first sign I saw…

I kid you not.

I was destined to buy yarn on this trip…a fact made even more clear when I found the women’s restroom located right beside the yarn store with this picture window in the hallway of the bathroom…

Unfortunately, the store was not open yet, but I made a mental note to return.

Meanwhile, my group began to shop, heading deeper into Sitka…

The main street splices off at the church you see dead center…one of the oldest churches in Sitka (front of it displayed below)…

We walked.

We shopped.

Several of the stores sold Russian-made items.  Chicky bought Guy Friend’s mom a teapot that was edged with 24K gold and made in Russia.  I wish I had a picture of it for you.

There was a shop that sold Russian-made barrettes and jewelry.  Although I was tempted, I didn’t buy anything.  I regret that now.

We found a gorgeous retirement home that had a gift shop inside…

This building had been a government building but had recently been renovated to accommodate retired citizens.  The gift shop was tiny, but it was run by residents and contained a few items made by the residents.  It seemed like a happy place inside…with light pouring in from the large windows.

The gardens were something else, let me tell you.  Sitka gets a lot of rain during the year (not that you can tell from my pictures or anything…LOL).  All of the landscaping in Sitka was green, and the flowers were in full bloom.  You can see a hint of the foliage in the next picture…

For lunch, we ate at a small Mexican restaurant.  Go figure, eh?  Mexican food in a Russian/American city.  What delicious food too!

By the time I finished lunch, I was ready to go back to the yarn store, so I went off by myself and half-ran there, doing my best to avoid puddles along the way.

Knitting With Class is an adorable store.  It mostly contains yarn, but it does have one side dedicated to bead fanatics.  Maybe it’s actually two businesses.  Hmmm.  I’m not sure.

There’s a smaller room in the back.  This room contains a table for lessons and knit-nights along with more yarn.

I got busted when the Mr. walked in as I was paying for this…

That is Cascade Heritage Sock Yarn.  And yes, I know that I can find this in a lot of yarn stores and that it’s not local (although it is made in Seattle, which is sort of vacation-related, right?), but I could not walk out of that store without buying something.  It’s knitting etiquette, after all.  And those of you who knit know this, right?

The Mr. didn’t seem bothered though.  He had actually noticed a felt bag that had a hefty price tag on it, commenting later that I should sell my felted bags, with as much money as that one had been marked for.

Anyhoo…

While I had been making my purchase, I had asked the owner of the store if there was any locally dyed or spun yarn.  She told me that a resident does, in fact, dye her own yarn and that she has a good eye for color.  After giving me directions to the store that sold this yarn, I bade her farewell.

I hoofed it back in the direction from which I’d come…back toward the church and the line of stores…to a quilt store…Abby’s Reflection.  She sells quilts, cross stitch kits, souvenirs, and a smattering of yarn.

Oh.

My.

Word.

I know that all five of you who are reading this don’t knit, so let me direct you to this post, which my friend, Nancy, recently shared with me.  You simply MUST read it.  It explains why sock yarn is so addicting.  Go read it and then come back and read the rest of my post.

Back?

Ok.

Let’s proceed.

I could not resist the yarn that was before me…

I’m not gonna lie.

It was pricey.

But, I was looking for something that represented Sitka…not something I could find in any tourist shop.

Heck…the name of the colorway is “Jewels of the Czar.”

You can’t get more Russian than that.

The yarn is a blend of superwash merino, cashmere, and nylon.

And this will be on my feet one day.

Uh huh.

I pick good souvenirs, do I not?

After my small purchase *cough*, I headed back to find my family.

They were in a shop that sold moccasins.

I had been wanting a pair, let me tell you.  So did Chicky.  So did Rooster.  So did Guy Friend.

No, Guy Friend was not on the trip, but he was living vicariously through Chicky, so he might as well have been with us.

We were moccasin crazy.

I sat down to try on a pair and discovered just how wet my feet were…

Those are my Hedera socks, by the way.  You know me…my knitting travels everywhere with me.

I did not get the pair of shoes I tried on.  Chicky did, though.  So did Rooster.  Chicky also bought Guy Friend a pair.

I was disappointed, but I had yarn.

Meanwhile, we had more sights to see.

Here is what we saw on our walk…

I saw the local high school…

I also saw the Old School…

Every bend in the path gave us another unique, beautiful view of the scenery…

The yards were gorgeous, really putting mine to shame…

I know I keep showing you pictures of the ship in harbor, but it really was a sight.  It reminded me of a toy boat in a pond…

Rooster is becoming quite the shutterbug as well…

We gradually made our way to the Sitka National Historical Park…

One of the primary focuses of this park is that of the native arts and cultures of Sitka, including totem poles…

There was a lovely exhibit of ceremonial robes…

The rest of the family went on a nature walk.  I passed and spent my time reading the various descriptions beside the exhibits.  I am, I am slightly embarrassed to admit, not much of a nature walk type of person.  I appreciate nature’s beauty, but I really don’t enjoy walking, in the rain, to look at it up close.

After the family got back, we made our way back to the tender.

I was, at this point, freezing.  My feet were soaked to the bone, and all I wanted was a hot bath.

The first thing I did, however, was take photographs of my yarn, with the landscape as the backdrop…

Day 5 was our second formal night, so we had to get all gussied up.

As we got ready, we bade a rainy farewell to Sitka…

Dinner was good, from what I recall.  I didn’t take pictures of it, but I trust it went down well.  😀

We were all a bit drained from the day.  Rooster put on a little singing show for Chicky and me in the room.  He’s a very laid back kid who doesn’t usually sing or dance, so he had us in stitches.

Day 5 or rather “Night” 5 was the Dutch Chocolatee Extravaganza on the Lido Deck.  This is when the pastry chefs work their fingers to the bone to create divine chocolate works of art.  I’ve gotta tell you that I wasn’t overly impressed and did not take any pictures!  There weren’t as many items as what I’ve seen on past cruises.  The family was so tired that hardly anyone ate anything but, instead, headed to bed early, where we found this towel animal…

We were excited about Day 6…which loomed only a few hours ahead…

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Day 4 – Hubbard Glacier

Posted on July 16, 2011 by auburnchick

When I awoke on Day 4 of The Great Adventure, the sun was shining, and the ocean was beautiful…

The weather was deceptively cold, as I quickly discovered when I went out on the 10th deck to sit for a spell…

Then, the rain came…

Then, it went away…

It just couldn’t decide if it was going to be sunny or not!

The ship was headed toward Hubbard Glacier, the largest tidewater glacier on the North American continent.  What makes this glacier so unusual is that it is thickening and advancing while other glaciers have been thinning and retreating. It is expected that the glacier will eventually close off the Russell Fjord and create what will then be known as Russell Lake…

As it stands right now, Hubbard Glacier is in the perfect position to be viewed from a cruise ship.

It would take us several hours to get there, however, so we were left to our own devices.

After breakfast, Super Sis, Coupon Queen, Chicky and I attended the Totally Tea class, during which we picked up some information about tea and the best way to prepare it.  It was led by two gals…Jo and Rebekah.  Rebekah was the gal who had led the horrible hummus and pita demonstration, and she proved herself somewhat unprofessional at the tea presentation as well, yawning through half of it.  Her eyes looked somewhat wild, like she’d been up all night.

I was not impressed.

Jo, however, was quite the opposite.  She was the Lifestylist, which meant that she was in charge of the fitness classes.  She also headed up the scavenger hunt that Rooster, my nephews, Super D, and Grand Pooba participated in.

Jo was FANTASTIC and really knew her stuff.  She threw in a lot of health facts and really did her best to steer us toward healthier options.  I liked her a lot.

One thing she suggested was adding milk to your tea.  I’d never heard of this before!  She also cautioned us not to steep tea too long because then it becomes bitter.  No wonder my tea of late has not tasted good!  She cautioned us not to use regular tea bags as the white ones are bleached, and we don’t want those chemicals in our tea.  Eww!

She showed us a tea diffuser and advised that we use loose tea and the diffuser, which allows tea leaves to “bloom,” thus spilling out their flavor.  I already own one of these and have used it before.

After the tea demonstration, I headed to the Crow’s Nest to watch the ship’s progress toward the glacier…

It doesn’t look like we’re too far, eh?

Ha!

Here’s another picture…a little closer in…

Eventually, my crew went outside.  The ship’s staff had opened up two decks in the front…decks 4 and 5…so ship goers could have a better look.  The staff provided hot chocolate and split pea soup to warm us up because the closer we drew to the glacier, the colder it got.

I could not stop snapping photos, so be forewarned…this post has a LOT of pictures!!

The scenery was breathtaking.  The following pictures are incredible…I was amazed by the way the clouds seemed to split the mountains in half…

The closer we got to the glacier, the more of these we saw…

Those are ice-bergs.  The dark one is dirty ice, so to speak.  Pieces of ice as tall as ten stories regularly break off of the glacier, fall into the water, and make their way down the pass.

I continued to take more pictures…

I zoomed in on my camera…

Looks small, eh?

Just wait.

The mountains that surround the glacier are green with snow on the top…

We drew closer.

I captured this very short video…

As we neared the glacier, the water became more and more saturated with chunks of ice…

It was very strange indeed!

We saw several large ice-bergs…

There was a man and his wife standing beside me, and he kept estimating the size of the bergs…”That one is the size of our house.”  His wife was dubious, as was I (but I kept my opinion to myself…for a change).

The river of ice continued to approach us…or rather, we closed the gap on the ice…

I love the next picture.  It reminds me of the shoreline of the beach that is near my house, except that mine doesn’t have ice in it…

The crowd on the bow got larger…

We were all mesmerized by the sights before us…

The bergs got larger still…

And the ice just kept coming!!

We were making progress, and the glacier loomed ever closer…

See the black area halfway down the ice?  That is actually the earth that is being pushed up between TWO glaciers.  Hubbard Glacier is to the right, and Valerie Glacier is on the left.

Our long wait outside rewarded us with the sight of the following furry creatures…

Those were seals!!  We watched as they slid off of the ice-bergs and disappeared beneath the water.  They were adorable!

As we got closer to the glacier, I could not help but notice the different colors within the glacier itself…

And the ship kept going…inching ever closer…

The actual size of the glacier, in comparison to the ship, became more and more apparent…

Being near the glacier reminded me of how very big this world is, and how very small I am…

We were constantly astounded as large chunks broke off of the glacier, sounding like thunder as they hit the water with large splashes.  Unfortunately, I was never quick enough to capture this in a picture, but those images will live on in my memory.

I’m not sure how close the ship got before stopping…I’d guess about a half of a mile.  Then, the ship did a slow turn so people located all over the ship could get a view of this most amazing phenomenon.  As the ship turned, we ran to our cabins to get a better view…

Before we knew it, we were saying goodbye to Hubbard Glacier…

We snapped a few last photos…

I pulled out the Chinook Shawl that I had recently finished.  I had already used it a couple of times during the trip, and I wore it when we were approaching the glacier.  The kids had nicknamed it “The Cape” because of it’s size, and they’d been begging me to flap it.

The glacier scenery made me think of eagles, so I finally agreed to their request…

It was a little bittersweet…leaving the glacier.  I’m not exactly sure why.  Perhaps it’s because I was seeing something I’d never seen before.  I mean, you can’t get much further from a warm, sunny beach than an icy cold glacier!

Going back through the passageway from whence we’d come…back into the clouds and mist…made me grateful that God had opened up the skies and allowed the sun to shine on our time with the glacier, for that is certainly what He did, as the travel director announced on the P.A.  She told us that she had not seen such a beautiful day in months!

Then, it was time to get ready for dinner.

I have a funny story to tell about dinner.

Every night as I finished dinner, the dining room steward presented me with the following day’s vegetarian menu.  I would make my selections ahead of time so the kitchen would have time to prepare as my meals weren’t exactly the dining room’s norm.  I was also free, each night, to select items from the regular menu, if I wanted.

Well, on this particular night, one of the appetizers struck my fancy.  From what I could recall, I had only ordered two things off of the vegetarian menu, so I figured I was all set.

So I ate whatever was brought to me, never giving anything a second thought.

However, when it was time for dessert, which I was skipping, instead of removing my dinner fork, they left it.

I thought I was done eating.

The kids had already left the table so they could go see a movie.

The rest of the adults waited.

That’s when I was told that the kitchen had lost my vegetarian entree order but had found it and was scrambling to make it for me.

Oh.  My.  Gosh.

I was already full, but I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.  I felt that I was already inconveniencing people by requesting a special menu, so I didn’t say anything.

Oh.  My.  Word.

When they brought up my food, I was incredulous.

Before me sat two or three skewers of vegetables.

With rice as a side.

Sigh.

The crew member in charge of the kitchen came up and personally apologized.

I assured him that it was quite alright.

Then, I sat down and stuffed that rice in my mouth, forcing myself to eat.

I ate a few vegetables and pushed the other ones around to make it look like I had eaten.

Guys, on a regular day, I don’t take in a lot of calories.  I haven’t been a big eater since starting my vegan diet…hence my weight loss and, now, smaller tummy.

I was beyond full, but I thanked my dining room steward graciously before Super Sis rolled me out of that room.

Sigh.

The next night, the manager of the dining room again came up to apologize.  That was when I told him the truth…how full I’d been from my other dishes and how it really would have been okay if he had permanently forgotten the dish.  He, with his French accent, got a good laugh.

Later that evening, the family attended music trivia in the Crow’s Nest.  Let the record show that I got the John Denver answer correct when nobody else did.

I headed to my room to get ready for bed, finding this awaiting me…

Day 5 would soon be upon us…

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Day 3 – Independence Day and First Day in Port

Posted on July 15, 2011 by auburnchick

Day 3 of our Great Adventure was, coincidentally, Independence Day.

I woke up to find that the ship was no longer rocking.

Yay!

The view outside my window was gorgeous!!

First, I enjoyed a breakfast that consisted of delicious fruit.

Then, I headed to the Crow’s Nest for Team Trivia.  We could see ice-bergs outside the windows…

The boys soundly beat the girls.  Pooey.

Next, it was time for the day’s dance lesson:  the Jive!

Super Sis and I paired up once again, only this time, it was my turn to be the guy.  We had great fun, let me tell you!

Unfortunately, I won’t burn your eyes from the pictures.  Watching Dancing With the Stars would never be the same after seeing us masterfully perform those steps.

:::AuburnChick rolls her eyes sarcastically:::

Hours fly by quickly when you’re on a cruise, and soon it was time for lunch on the Lido Deck, where I took advantage of the beautiful view of the water…

The ship was closing in on civilization, and watching the approach was fun indeed…

We were surrounded by mountains…

Houses were tucked away into the landscape…

I spied waterfalls hidden in the mountains’ crevices…

Back in the room, I began getting ready to depart the ship, putting on my Bex socks, which had accompanied me on the last cruise I went on…

Then, I went back out on the deck to take more pictures.  The next one might look familiar (it’s the new one at the top of my blog)…

My newest knitting project wanted to take in the scenery as well…

The city started coming into focus…

Apparently, there are a lot of boats around here, as evidenced by the small harbor I saw…

Here’s more of the local scenery…

One sight I never tired of throughout the trip was that of sea planes coming in for landings…

Finally, we pulled into port…

A quick story about the above picture.

When we returned to the ship later in the day, we went out on our balcony (made larger because we got the stewards to unlock the connecting partitions that separated all three rooms).

We watched as a woman and her dog played on the rocky shore.  The woman took a ball and put it into a long ball throwing contraption.  Her dog, a golden retriever, eagerly ran down to a large, flat stone, looked back at her, and sat, wagging his tail in anticipation.

The woman threw the ball over halfway across our view of the water…a long way…and the dog happily retrieved it.

Please keep in mind that the temperature was in the low 50’s, and that water had to be frigid.

Yet, the dog retrieved the ball, ran back up the hill, rolled around a bit to dry off, did his business behind the bushes, and then gave the woman the ball, running back down to the flat stone to begin the process again.

We watched this go on four or five times.  It was apparent that the dog was having the time of his/her life.

Now, where was I?

Oh yes…I remember.

As we departed the ship, I took this picture.

If you look closely, you’ll see that the sign on the green building in front of the ship has the name of the city we were visiting…

Juneau!

Yes, my friends, we were on an Alaskan cruise!!

Look at all of the shops that awaited our arrival…

A peek back at the ship…

Some people braved a sky cab, which took them to the top of the mountain…

I don’t know why, but this steep set of stairs caught my attention…

This display in front of a fur store caught everyone’s attention…

I don’t know that I could see myself wearing that at the beach.  LOL

We had a lot of fun trying on things inside…until we got in trouble for taking pictures of ourselves.  We got busted by a store employee who pointed to a sign that said “No photography allowed.”  Oops.

Not too far down the street, we saw the famous Red Dog Saloon…

You had to be 18 to enter, and since I’m just a year shy of that, I stayed on the street.  heehee

No matter where we shopped, we had an amazing view of the mountains…

We headed downtown, where I found this large map, posted at the harbor, helpful…

We decided to visit the museum, however it was closed because of the holiday…

So, we headed back for more shopping.  I wanted to visit the shops I’d seen down at the harbor; however, Super Sis had a surprise for me.  She had run into something near and dear to my heart…

Look closer at the sign…

Oh yeah…a yarn store…in Juneau!!!!

Of course, I had to go in.  Super Sis stayed with me while everyone else headed to other stores.  They just don’t understand the yarn obsession that all knitters suffer from.

I was pleased when I found the following…

See the label?  It’s hand dyed right there in Juneau.

Talk about a souvenir!!  Woo Hoo!

I also fell in love with this mug…

Super Sis and I headed out to find our family, but I had to potty.  Look at what I found right beside the bathroom…

Yep!  Another yarn store!  This one had every nook and cranny filled with yarn…

I’ve gotta tell you that by this time, I was on sensory overload, and I DID NOT BUY yarn here.

The store owner saw my bag from the other store and was disappointed, but when she heard that I had purchased the locally dyed yarn, she was more forgiving.

One last stop that I made was to a gift shop by the harbor.  Throughout my trip, I found myself looking for less touristy things…items that had relevance to the local areas that we were visiting.

I found these, which I took out to admire after I got back on the ship…

I am kicking myself for not buying the necklace that went with these items.  These were designed by a local artist, and I never found them at any other stop we made.

I purchased the next pair of earrings at one of the tourist traps.  I would later see these at every port, but I loved the color and the style…

Of course, I had to pull out my yarn and admire it again, with the local scenery in the background…

We boarded the ship tired but happy.  Juneau was amazing and worth the walking we did.

We were all hungry and headed to dinner.  This patriotic cake greeted us as we entered the dining room…

I headed up to the Crow’s Nest after dinner and treated myself to a holiday-themed Pina Colada…

As you can see from the window in the background, the weather turned rainy.  Thank goodness it had held off while we were out and about.

While in the Crow’s Nest, I had the honor of watching two bald eagles soar across the sky.

What a treat and not a sight I’m used to in Florida.

I noticed that the American flag was flying from the bow of the ship…

When I returned to the cabin at the end of the day, I found this…

Meanwhile, the ship headed back out to open water…headed toward its next destination…

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Day 2 – At Sea

Posted on July 14, 2011 by auburnchick

Day 2 of The Great Adventure was spent at sea…the entire day.

The sky was overcast, and there were mountains in the distance…

The ship rocked a lot as it made its way across the waves.  Many in our crew fought queasiness throughout the day.

There were a number of activities going on around the ship.

As I walked to the Lido Deck to eat breakfast, I saw that the Signature Shops had set up a sale around the pool.  Because I had not had time to replace the battery in my watch, I purchased this inexpensive sports watch to make do…

It’s actually quite a decent watch considering the $10 I spent on it.  It has an alarm, snooze, calendar, hourly chime, and stopwatch.

Next up was something I’d seen on the schedule that had been left in the cabin by my cabin stewards the night before…

Dance Class!

You might remember my recent post – where I explained that I would like to learn how to do the waltz.

Well, my dreams came true when the dance class provided instructions on how to do the waltz!!

Coupon Queen and Chicky accompanied me to the class where, to my dismay, mostly couples showed up.

I figured I would probably mostly be watching; however, the instructors, dancers who work for the cruise line, lined up the males and females and taught both genders their respective steps.

So, I got up and lined up with the girls and learned the basic steps.

When it came time for dancing to the music, I sat down and watched.

I didn’t have a partner.

Still, I enjoyed myself.

Next, Super Sis, Coupon Queen, and I went down to the shopping area and waited to see if we would win a drawing for jewelry.

We didn’t.

Oh well.  I haven’t exactly won the lottery before…I’ve never been what one might term “lucky” as far as winning things goes.

Somehow, we fit lunch into the tight activity schedule…hustling our way up to the Crow’s Nest for the next item on the agenda…

Line Dancing!!!

Chicky, Super Sis, and I had a grand time learning the steps to several dances…

Super Sis is the first gal on the right…dark hair.  I’m to her left (blonde ponytail), and Chicky is to my left…barely seen…blonde hair.

Take a look at our feet.  you can tell that we’re definitely Southern girls…used to going barefoot!

You guys…let me go on about this activity for just a moment.

I have to say that this was one of the most fun activities I did the entire trip.

I love dancing…always have.  If you are reading this and knew me in high school, then you’ll know that I went to every high school dance and was usually the last person to sit down.

During our little dance session on the ship, we learned how to do the Hustle (think about John Travolta).  Last, we learned how to dance to the song Cotton Eyed Joe.

Now, first the instructor made us pair up.  Super Sis and I joined forces.

Then, we had to make two circles, with the guys on the inside.

Sis and I looked at each other…eyes huge.

She got to be the “man.”

teehee

The last step we learned was that of the guys pushing their partners (the girls) forward to the person in front of them.

That meant that we were changing partners, and we had to put our arms around our new partners and hold hands.

Can you saw AWKWARD?

I was mortified, and Sis’s face looked the same.

Still, we played along.

The music was turned on, and off we went.

At times, I had a girl partner as other friends had to take turns playing the guy of the pair just like Sis and I.

What a great time we had!!

Oh my word!

I am ready to buy a pair of cowgirl boots and go dancing every weekend!!

LOL

While we were line dancing, Coupon Queen went to a class on flower arranging.  She’s pretty good at crafty stuff, so this was right up her alley.

After the line dancing, we headed to the Culinary Arts area for a lesson about hummus and pita.

When we entered the room, we saw tables set up like the following picture…

There was going to be a wine tasting after the hummus class.  I thought the glasses were gorgeous as they sat on the red table tops.

The hummus and pita thing was held behind the red curtain just beyond the wine glasses, so we bid adieu to the beautiful display and made our way to the back of the room.

I have to tell you that the hummus/pita thing was the most poorly done demonstration I’ve ever attended on a cruise.  Unfortunately, the gal…the one in charge of all culinary activities…would become my least favorite employee on ship…so unprofessional and disorganized.  I attended one other activity she participated in but, for the most part, avoided anything that had her name on it.  Sad to say but oh so true…and my only complaint of the entire cruise.

At 3pm, the family gathered for Team Trivia.

Now, you must know something about my family.

We like trivia.

A lot.

We divided into girl/boy teams, just like the last cruise.

Chicky had not been feeling well, so she napped through the trivia.  We forgave her.

Still, the girls managed to beat the boys by one point.  Overall, our group didn’t beat out the other contestants that day (or any other day, for that matter).  Still, it was fun.

After trivia, we got ready for our first formal night.

Dinner was delicious.  I ate vegetarian sushi, vegetable strudel, and mushroom soup…

After dinner, Super Sis, Super D, their children, and mine attended the 70’s music trivia session.

What fun!  We did real well, but we didn’t win…coming up just short.  Still, we had a great time.

After the trivia, there was going to be a 70’s dance party.

I was totally up for that; however, the others left me to attend a show.  I don’t like attending the shows on ship.  The auditorium makes me feel nauseous.  So, I stayed to watch people dance.  It really wasn’t that much fun, so I left the party early and went up to the Crow’s Nest to read for a while before heading back to my room, where I found this towel animal…

None of us were exactly sure what it was.  We thought it might have been a sea shell.

Everyone was eager for Day 3…when we would pull into our first port.

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Day 1 – The Great Adventure

Posted on July 13, 2011 by auburnchick

When last I left off, our crew of ten was preparing for a great adventure.

I woke up early…5:45am…the time difference telling on me…along with the excitement of the day ahead.

As I quietly got ready in the hotel’s bathroom while my family slept, Chicky popped her head in.

She, too, had not been able to sleep in.

In fact, all three families woke up in our respective rooms around the same time.

I grabbed a healthy breakfast in the hotel’s restaurant…

Unfortunately, the fruit was not very good…sad to say.  Most of it was hard and just not ripe.  Oh well.  I knew I’d be eating good soon enough.

We applied our luggage tags to our bags for the next part of our journey, met the shuttle that Coupon Queen had prearranged, and headed out, taking photos along the way…

The next photo will give you a better clue of where we were (but not where we would wind up)…

So, we were in Seattle.

But, what were we doing there?

Well, that’s for me to know and for you to soon find out.

Keep reading.

We arrived at our destination and unloaded the many bags that the driver had somehow fit into the van.

And that’s when we saw it…

Our next mode of transportation…

Hola, cruise ship!

Oh yeah, baby.

This, my friends, is the Westerdam.

We were headed on our third cruise as a large group (my fourth total).

Although Coupon Queen and Grand Pooba have been on a number of Holland America cruises, this would be my family’s second one with this cruise line.  Prior to that, we’ve been on a Disney cruise.

The check-in process was fairly painless.

I wasn’t surprised when I got pulled aside to empty out the contents of my knitting bag.  The scanner had shown the small pliers I keep for repairs to stitch markers.  The security guard raised his eyebrows at me.

Seriously…pliers…me…with all that yarn in my bag?

He let me keep my tool and rejoin my family.

At least I wasn’t patted down like an elderly woman I saw standing one line over.

We waited in a huge room while various groups were called for.

I asked a lady to take a group picture of us, which I can’t show you because then you’d see what beautiful creatures we are.

We were even more beautiful because we were all sporting Auburn apparel…my idea since Auburn had won the college football national championship in January.

It was finally our turn to board, but before we did, we posed for the “official” group photo.

Oh, my word, but the photographer was quick.  He took one large group picture, in which we placed Coupon Queen and Grand Pooba in the center, of course.

Then, the photographer snapped individual pictures.

It was QUICK, QUICK, QUICK.

I doubted that the pictures would be any good.

I was wrong.

The pictures were FANTASTIC!

Dang it.

We bought the group picture and the kids’ individual photos.

Anyhoo…the buying came later.

First up was the most important thing…

Depositing our carry-on bags in our rooms and eating.

Our rooms were nice…what we expected having gone on several cruises…

I loved the robes…

Which were quickly adorned properly…

We also found a complimentary bottle of champagne, from the travel agent…

After eating lunch, I grabbed my knitting and headed out to explore the ship.

The views from the various decks were impressive…

Downtown Seattle’s skyline was so different from the view I have in Podunk, USA…

On the way to the ship, we had driven close to the Space Needle.  Seeing it from the ship was something else altogether…

My knitting decided to come out and play…

Saturdays are busy days for cruise lines.  I saw the Golden Princess docked beside the Westerdam.  This ship would be our travel partner throughout the week.  One interesting fact is that four people I know were on that ship.  I was hoping to run into them when we stopped at our various ports, but that never happened.

Eventually, it was time to leave port.  The backdrop of the mountains provided a picturesque view…

Deck 10, also known as the Crow’s Nest, was a great place to take in the scenery, as Chicky is doing in the following photograph…

Then, it was time for dinner.  My dining steward provided me with a vegetarian menu…not quite the same as vegan, but it was better than nothing.  Throughout the cruise, I ate a wonderful variety of dishes.  Around night four, my steward figured out that I was vegan, and a vegan menu was provided.  Oh my word…the difference was amazing…the entire list of dishes was free of animal products, including milks and cheeses, which I can’t do regardless of what type of diet I’m eating.

Anyhoo, my first meal included the following dish…grilled asparagus and mushrooms…

The view from the dining room was of the back of the ship…such a pretty sight…

Before I knew it, the sun was going down.  As you know, sunset is my favorite time of the day.  I managed to grab a few pictures…

The sun had set on Day 1 of The Great Adventure.

Where we were heading is still a surprise.

Stay tuned!

Filed under: Vacation | Tagged: , , , | 4 Comments »

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