The Start of another memory trip!! Alaska here we come again!!

May 12th - Since we fly stand-by and the flights were getting very full we decided to start attempting to catch a flight a couple of days before the cruise started. We made the late flight from Tampa to Houston. The last flight from Houston to Seattle was -4 when we took off from Tampa, so we were sure we would be staying in Houston the night but decided we would try anyway. We got to the Seattle flight about a half hour before boarding and were pleasantly surprised to find we were going to be getting on the flight. Arrived in Seattle around 2AM and didn’t get to bed until around 4 am.

May 13th - We are really tired today and have decided to take it easy and rest so our resistance is not compromised. We went for a walk in the afternoon. At one point Doug said the area looked awfully familiar. We looked around and all of a sudden we realized we had been here on our way home from Alaska a couple of years ago!! We had arrived after dark and could not find the RV park we were looking for so ended up staying behind a tire company. I remember I slept in my clothes because I was afraid someone would find us and tell us to leave. That tire shop was down the street from the hotel we were staying at!!!

May 14th - We were going to rent a car today and do some touring, but the weather is cold and rainy so we decided to spend the day reading and between showers we took a couple of walks. We are getting used to relaxing!!!!

May 15th - Today is absolutely beautiful - the sun is shining and temp is about 70 degrees. We get on the boat about noon and they started feeding us immediately!!! We got ourselves settled in our cabin, which we find very nice and comfortable. After that we went up to the top deck and relaxed on a lounge chair as we took off. What a beautiful view of Seattle and Mt. Rainier. A great start for a cruise.

May 16th - We awoke to a very foggy, cold and rainy day. We are hoping that we get this nasty weather over with before getting to any scenic areas. The ship is rolling a bit and as we walk to breakfast we all look like we have already been hitting the bottle!!! We spent today browsing the ship. I did not sleep too well last night so take a 2 hour nap this afternoon. Tonight is a formal night, Doug is really not looking forward to dressing up, but I think we will do it at least once!! Doug did fine with the ‘dress up night”!!

May 17th - It is cold and dreary as we get off the boat in Juneau. I can see why this is not accessible by road, It is literally built at the base of mountains. We did a tour of the State building and walked past the governor’s mansion - very nice. Got back on the boat early, we are both having trouble adapting to the time change!!!

May 18th - We are both up at 5AM!!! Today we cruise Glacier National Park. This is what Doug has been looking forward to and we are not disappointed. The day is sunny and clear and we are rewarded with glacier calving, lots of seals, whales and otters. What a great day!! We are both eating too much and keep saying ‘tomorrow we will be better’!!!! Tomorrow we stop in Sitka. I hope the weather holds out for us!! We were told by the park ranger today that 300 days a year they have rain and clouds!!!