Alaska Cruise - May 2009

We went on an 11 night Alaska cruise out of San Diego. It stopped in San Francisco, Icy Strait Point (Hoonah), Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, and finally Vancouver. We stayed a couple nights in Vancouver before flying back home to San Diego. The scenery was amazing and we were lucky to have sunny and warm weather throughout our whole trip! The highlight of our trip was when we hiked on a glacier!

Our excursions included a private van tour in Skagway, hiking the Mendenhall glacier in Juneau, and a boat tour to the Misty Fjords.


I'm glad we got to see the glaciers, those were definitely the highlight of our trip and the real reason we chose to go on the cruise. We saw Hubbard Glacier from 400 feet away on the ship and we hiked on Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau. It's amazing how much of the Mendenhall Glacier has retreated , even since the 70s. Hubbard Glacier is constantly moving, so we got to see a lot of calving and hear lots of "White Thunder" (when the ice breaks off it sounds like thunder).

We saw some wildlife, including several Bald Eagles and a mountain goat. We did not get to see any bears although there were 2 spotted on our train ride in Skagway. We were in one of the last cars, so they were out of sight by the time we came around.

A little about the ship, Royal Caribbean's, Radiance of the Seas.  We had an aft balcony room.  The balconies on the aft are pretty big and spacious.  We loved it and were always outside checking out the scenery.  Everyone on the ship was very friendly, the staff always said "My Pleasure" anytime I said "Thank You."  We had late seating and it worked out well for port days, but we missed sunsets.  The food was overall really good.  We didn't go to many of the shows, because they didn't interest us really.  I think my favorite part of the ship was the atrium.  One of my biggest complaints were the temperatures of the hot tubs, they were pretty mild.  No one was ever in the ones outside, because they weren't hot enough.  We used the gym almost everyday.  We signed up for spin classes and the instructors worked us out pretty hard!  This was our second cruise and we really liked the ship!


SAN FRANCISCO, 1ST PORT

We've been to San Franciso several times, so we didn't plan an excursion.  We just wanted to visit some friends.

We tried to wake up early to watch us go under the Golden Gate Bridge, but we couldn't wake up at 5:30am when our alarm went off.  We got off the ship after a quick breakfast and a work out at about 10am to meet up with some friends by lunchtime.  We walked a little down Fisherman's Wharf before grabbing a cab to the Mission area.

We got to Mission and had coffee at The Corner coffee shop. We had 2 huge cups of their french press coffee.  It was delicious.  They offered us a carafe of water for our table as well.

After finishing our coffee, we went 2 doors down to meet our friends for lunch at Weird Fish (Yelp Review).  This is a great restaurant with sustainable fish and vegetarian options.  It's a little on the small side, so it gets busy pretty easily.  After lunch, our friend took us for ice cream at a supposedly famous creamery, Bi-Rite Creamery.  I'd never heard of it before, but I had the cinnamon ice cream with snickerdoodles and it was amazing!

We left our friends to head back to our ship by using the Bart.  We stopped at Union Square to ride the cable car, which is one of my favorite things to do in San Francisco.  I like to ride on the outside in the front, but that part fills up fast.  We got off around Columbia St. and walked back to our ship.

We left San Francisco about 5:30pm and stood on our balcony to watch us go back under the Golden Gate bridge.  No reason to have gotten up so early in the first place, we had to go back under it to get out!

ICY STRAIT POINT, 2ND PORT

The cruise ship called this port Icy Strait Point.  At the point is a historic cannery that serves as a museum now with shops, a couple of restuarants, and it has a zipline.  The small village a mile away is Hoonah.  This village is an authentic Alaska village.  This town was the only place that wasn't touristy on our trip.  It's just a small town with a few stores, a bar, and a trading post.

We got off the ship about 2:30pm.  We decided to walk through Hoonah and look around.  We visited a local liquor store, a thrift store, a souvenir store, the trading post, and, of course, the bar.  We were just browsing around the different stores.  Everyone working in Hoonah was very nice and said hello and bye to us.  We stopped in the bar, The Office Bar, for a drink before heading back to our ship.

On the way back to the ship, we saw our first Eagle in Alaska.  After that, we saw them all the time.  We toured the cannery and shops after returning from Hoonah and got back onto our ship about 6:30pm.

HUBBARD GLACIER

We were scheduled to view the Hubbard Glacier from 10am to 2pm.  We got up and went to breakfast around 9am.  As we were enjoying our breakfast, we started noticing floating ice in the ocean going past our window.  We got up and went outside to check out the view and we'd started our approach of the Hubbard Glacier.  It was pretty windy outside and everyone was crowding around the front of the ship.  We stood there for quite a while until we finally decided to view the area from other parts of the ship.

With all the floating little icebergs, we didn't think we'd get that close to the Glacier.  The ship kept going and getting closer and closer.  We finally got within 400 feet!  We heard and saw the glacier calving.  It is a moving glacier, so it is always calving.  The sound it makes, "white thunder", was awesome!

The ship stayed on the port side for a while, then turned to the starboard side for a while.  All while we were within the 400 feet of the glacier.  Finally, we headed out of the bay and towards our next port.

JUNEAU, 3RD PORT

Our trip to Alaska on the cruise ship was all about seeing the glaciers while they were still around.  So, our plan for Juneau was to visit the Mendenhall Glacier.  Our original plan was to take the public bus to the visitor center and find some trails to go hiking.  We were watching the travel channel one day and saw a story on this company, Above & Beyond Alaska, that took visitors to actually hike on the glacier.  We immediately booked a trip with the company (TA Review).

We hiked though the forest for about 2 miles then climbed up some steep rocks and down the other side before reaching the glacier.  We stopped to put on our crampons and climbed onto the glacier.  Our guide taught us how to walk on the ice in the crampons and we followed him around the glacier to see some of the amazing things on the glacier.  We hiked on the glacier for about an hour before making the hike back to the trailhead.  We all filled up our water bottles with glacier water before heading back.

We ended up having a couple of people on the tour that went a little slower and we ended up 2 hours behind schedule.  One lady didn't make it to the glacier, because the steep climb up the rocks became too difficult for her.  This delay made for a long day with only snacks provided by the tour company (trail mix, granola bar, 2 mini candy bars, gummi fruit snacks), a bottle of water, and no bathroom break!  We made it back to the trailhead about 5:30pm.  Regardless, it was the greatest part of our whole trip and something that I will never forget and would do again in a heartbeat!

Our guide, Ed, was born and raised in Juneau and he was very educated about the area, glacier, and vegetation.  He said he's been hiking on the glacier since he was 8.  And, he made the trek on the ice fields from Juneau to Skagway in 10 days pulling all his supplies on a sled!

SKAGWAY, 4TH PORT

We got up early to meet a private tour guide off the ship that was going to take us to explore Skagway, the Yukon, and Emerald Lake outside of Carcross (Yukon Territory of Canada).  Dyea Dave was highly recommended on TripAdvisor and I read great reviews of his trips and how funny he was on his tours.  I didn't hesitate to email him and set up a tour during out stop in Skagway.

We got off the ship about 7:30am and looked for our guide.  Dave had said it would be easy to find him as he'd be standing there in a black top hat.  It took a while to find him, because he sent someone else in his place.  We finally found his van and his sister, Ruth, who was going to be our guide for our trip.  After getting loaded in the van, we headed to another ship to pick up another couple.

We headed into town and stopped at the Visitor Center to watch a film on the history of Skagway.  The town has a very interesting history that relates to the Klondike Gold Rush.  Ruth took us through the town to point out some historic buildings.  Then, we took of for the Canada border and Yukon Territory.


We stopped along the way to take pictures.  We saw the WP&Y railroad and a train moving along the moutainside.  We ended up taking the train back down to Skagway from the Canada border in Fraser.

We crossed the Canada border and drove to Carcross and Emerald Lake.  After visiting the lake, we stopped in Carcross to have lunch at a little diner connected to a gas station.  We drove through Carcross, got our passports stamped and headed back to Fraser to catch the train back to Skagway.


After getting off the train, we headed to the Red Onion Saloon for a drink and walked through Skagway before getting back on our cruise ship.  We stopped at one ice cream shop for a snack and they'd run out of ice cream!  They told us to come back the next day after they got their delivery!

KETCHIKAN, 5TH PORT

We arrived in Ketchikan an hour and a half earlier than planned.  We scheduled a boat tour to see the Misty Fjords that was going to take up our whole time in port, so this gave us the opportunity to get off the ship and explore Ketchikan a little.

We got off and headed to Creek St, a former red-light district.  It's a very scenic street, sort of reminded me of something you'd find in Silver Dollar City.  We took the elevator train up to the Cape Fox Lodge.  We orginally planned on eating lunch up there, but saw the Ketchikan Fish Market on the way and decided to go back down to eat there instead.  We did order a marshmallow latte from the little coffee shop in the Lodge first, it was very tasty!

For lunch at the Fish Market, we had halibut fish tacos and a halibut sandwich.  After lunch, we got back on board to get ready for our excursion to the Misty Fjords.  


We boarded the boat to the Fjords and found only 30 people or so on a rather large catamaran. It was an hour and a half to the heart of the Misty Fjords.  Along the way, we stopped to see an Eagle's Nest and EddyStone Rock (made out of volcanoes).  In the Fjords, we saw amazing scenery, waterfalls, and a mountain goat.  We stayed about 1/2 hour before heading back to Ketchikan.  On they way back, they stopped to see Harbor Seals and an Indian pictograph.

The tour had a snack bar onboard and they gave out strudels, vege chili, clam chowder, and smoked salmon on a cracker.  They also had free flowing coffee, hot tea, and cocoa to keep you warm.

It was a long trip, but I was too afraid to get in a floatplane to make the trip.  I heard it was a 2 hour trip that way.

VANCOUVER, DISEMBARKATION

We disembarked from our cruise in Vancouver on a Friday morning.  We got off our ship a little after 10am and got through customs and the taxi line in about an hour.  We were at our hotel by 11:30am.  Our room at the Hampton Inn (TA Review) wasn't ready, so we went out exploring.

We walked to the Marina in Yaletown to catch the Aquabus to Granville Island to visit the public market.  We spent a couple of hours there checking out all the booths and enjoying some food from one of the sandwich and sausage stands.  


We took the aquabus back to Yaletown and from there, we walked to Chinatown and on to Gastown.  We stopped to have a couple of drinks at Chill Winston and people watch before walking back to our hotel to check in.  We had dinner in Kitsilano at a fabulous place called Bishop's (Yelp Review) and spent some time soaking in the hot tub before calling it a night.

The next day, we walked back to Yaletown and rented bikes to cruise along the seawall bike paths.  There were so many people on the paths.  It was a great day to get out and ride up through Stanley Park.  We went 15 miles in about 2 and 1/2 hours.  After our ride, we had a drink and some fish and chips along the bike route.  This is a very fun thing to do as there are so many different people and bikes along these paths.  We had dinner in Gastown our second night at Water St. Cafe.

Our flight out was on Air Canada and it was non-stop to San Diego.

Venice - November 2008

3 Nights in Venice – A Sinking City

Our longest day of travel was when we went from Cinque Terre to Venice. The trip required 2 train changes and took about 6 hours. It was raining when we arrived in Venice and that made me a little nervous. It floods in Venice, normally in November and March, so I was hoping we wouldn't be there for any flooding. It had been raining in Venice the previous 5 days, but luckily for us, it only rained the day we arrived.

We opted to use our Hilton points for our stay in Venice, might as well save some money. We had been staying in small hotels and family-run B&Bs throughout our trip, but we enjoyed the comfort of the hotel. We had a nice, large, flat screen TV to watch the U.S. election results, we arrived in Venice on Nov 4. It was also our anniversary and the hotel had a bottle of Bellini and a card waiting for us in our room. After getting used to having a cappuccino and a croissant for breakfast, we had a nice buffet that included eggs, potatoes, waffles and the most delicious ham. Staying in the Hilton was a nice way to end our trip and celebrate our anniversary.

Venice has some great architecture and lots of canals and bridges everywhere. The gondolas everywhere were beautiful. We got lost in Venice a lot! There are no major streets and none of the streets go straight and once you hit a piazza, the streets go off in different directions. We had the most trouble looking for restaurants that were in our Rick Steves book. By the time we found a place, I was starving! There were signs along certain paths that pointed you in the direction of the major sites, like St. Mark's Square, the Rialto, even the train station, but it was hard to stay on the right path. All the sudden there weren't anymore signs. It was neat though seeing the backstreets of Venice, not knowing where you were. You couldn't get too lost, since you were on an island!

The food in Venice was my least favorite. There were a lot of fish on the menus. We like fish, Mike more than me, but options for non-fish dishes were very limited. I was brave, however, and tried cuttlefish in ink while we were there. It was a popular dish in Venice, so I wanted to try it. I didn't like it much, but ate what I could. We went to a hole in the wall joint for lunch one day and I had spaghetti with clams and Mike had fish lasagna, both were pretty good. Our last night, we went to a restaurant that proudly served no fish. It was one of our favorite restaurants from our trip.

We flew out of Venice and were able to find our way to the airport without having to pay 100 Euros for a private water taxi. We took the 8am hotel shuttle to the Zattere stop and walked to Piazzale Roma in about 20 minutes. From there, we took the 8:40am bus #5 (2.50 Euro pp) to the airport and were dropped off at the terminal in 25 minutes.

LODGING

Hilton Molino Stucky (TA Review)

We used our points to stay at this hotel. We were visiting Italy for 2 weeks and Venice was our last stop and it was our anniversary. 

The hotel is located on the island of Giudecca, but they offer a free shuttle that ran from 0800-2350 while we were there, it may run later in the summer. It left the hotel at :00 and :40 every hour. When leaving at :00, it stopped at Zattere and San Marco. When leaving at :40, it only stopped at Zattere. It left from Zattere back to the hotel at :30 and :45 every hour. It left from San Marco back to the hotel at :20 every hour. There was an hour break between 1340 and 1440 and between 2040 and 2140.

ACTIVITIES

Tour the Grand Canal by Vaperetto – Great Scenery and Architecture

We bought a vaporetto pass once we arrived in Venice.  It was for 48 hours.  It really came in handy if you want to get somewhere fast.  Walking is not fast as you can get lost very easily, which is fun too if you aren't in a hurry (or hungry!).

We got on line 2 at the train station going down the canal.  We sat in the back outside for better views.  We stayed on the vaporetto all the way to St. Mark's Square.  I read the guide book while we rode down the canal and tried to point out things to Mike as he snapped pictures.

There were other people doing the same thing with different guide books.

Doge's Palace – Venetian Gothic Palace

This palace was the seat of the Venetian government and home of it's ruling duke for 400 years.

We decided to do the Secret Itineraries Tour to go into rooms not normally open to the public.  It was 5 Euros extra per person to do this tour.  Our group was only 15 people, which was very unusual according to our guide.  Our tour lasted a little over an hour.  It was really cool hearing the story of Casanova and how he ended up in prison there and also finally escaped.  I would really recommend this tour.

After the tour, we toured the main halls of the palace.

Top of the Campanile di San Marco – Views of St. Mark’s Square and Venice

You don't climb to the top of the Campanile, you ride the elevator!  There were some nice views once at the top, but I think the views from the San Giorgio Maggorie across the lagoon were better.

Top of the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore – Better Views than the Campanile

We decided to visit the church and go up the belltower to see the views.  Again, you ride the elevator to the top.  The church has a Gregorian Mass at 8am that I wished we'd gone to, maybe next time.

Murano – Island of Glass


We took a vaporetto to Murano to walk around and look at all the glass.  The island is popular with glass factories and a glassmaking museum.  We strolled the main canal Via Fondamenta Vetrai to visit the various stores selling glass products.  There were some amazing things made out of glass!

Drink Wine at Al Marco – Have Some Wine With Locals

One of the things Rick Steves recommends doing in Venice is a pub crawl.  He recommends going from place to place having different courses or appetizers at each place.  We didn't do a full pub crawl, but we did stop at one of his recommended places to have a drink.

This place is just a hole in the wall that serves a nice selection of wine.  You order a glass and just stand around in the square and enjoy conversation and the wine.  We ended up having 2 glasses each and by the time we left, there were several others that had come up and were standing around the square.

St Mark's Square - Great Vibe

There are a lot of people in St Mark's Square most of the time.  This is the square where you see people feeding the pigeons.  People try to attract a lot of pigeons and take photos of themselves with the pigeons all around or on them.  

We came here one evening to find some live music.  During the busy tourist season there are dueling orchestras.  We found a pianist playing outside a little cafe on evening during our visit.  We sat at a table and ordered 2 cappuccinos and a piece of cheesecake to share and enjoyed the music.

RESTAURANTS

Brek – Cafeteria By Train Station

We got off the train in Venice and was starving.  We wanted to eat something right away.  We went to Brek, which is a cafeteria style place 5 minutes from the train station.

We had lasagna, pasta and shared a huge salad.  It was a great fast place for a meal and was very busy.  We spent 15 Euros on our meal.

Trattoria da Giorgio ai Greci – Canalside Setting off the Grand Canal

We were looking for canalside dining and decided on this restaurant as it was a little away from the "Rialto Bridge Tourist Trap."  Supposedly, the restaurants along the Grand Canal are becoming known for bad food and service and expensive prices.

There is canalside setting at this restaurant, but there are only 4 tables and you have to make reservations for them.  It was cool at night when we were there, so we were ok sitting inside.

I decided on the tourist menu (17 Euros) here and decided to try cuttlefish with ink.  It seemed to be a popular dish in Venice and I wanted to try the local food.  I didn't like it so much and wouldn't order it again, but it was a fun experience.  Mike had the lasagna, it was just ok.  We spent 42 Euros on our meal and that included wine.

One downside to this restaurant was the moldy smell during our meal, but we were in a corner.  Venice is known for this smell due to all the water.

Trattoria alla Rivetta – Eat Where Gondoliers Eat

We wanted to experience this place as it was popular with gondoliers at lunch.  If they like it, it must be good!  It is a very small place and gets crowded when it's busy.  The restaurant has long tables and they  mix parties at each table.  We were sat with another group of young girls.  They try to give one basket of bread for the whole table, but we politely asked for our own.

Venice is very popular with the seafood dishes!  It's hard to find entrees without fish sometimes.  We decided to go with the spaghetti and clams and the fish lasagna.  Both dishes were very good!  We also had wine and spent 27 Euros for our meal.

It was fun watching the gondoliers eat their lunch.  They eat a lot of food!

Enoteca e Trattoria la Bitta – No Fish Served!

It says "No Fish" on their business cards.  I've mentioned that Venice is popular with seafood and it's hard to find entrees without fish.  I wasn't too impressed with the seafood in Venice, maybe because we have great seafood in San Diego?

I was amazed at how easily we found this restaurant walking from our hotel shuttle stop at Zattere.  We tried to follow a map in Rick Steves book, but could never find the names of the streets we were on.  We just kept walking, turned a corner, and there it was!

The restaurant is very dark inside, but it's a nice and cozy little restaurant.  We decided on a bottle of wine, the gnocchi and this green pasta with sausage and peppers.  Both dishes were absolutely amazing!  The best food in Venice and possibly our whole trip.  The service was pretty good here as well.  We asked the server for recommendations and she was very helpful.

This restaurant only accepts cash (most places in Venice prefer cash) and our bill was 52 Euros.

Continue reading our trip:

3 Nights in Rome

3 Nights in Sorrento

3 Nights in Florence

3 Nights in Cinque Terre