Sunday Morning May 26

It is a day at sea and we are sailing up between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia.  This is some of the most beautiful scenery ever.  Since I am up so darn early (5 am, which is really sleeping in for us since we wake normally at 3:30 for work) I quietly get dressed so I don’t wake Bernie and head out.  I walk the promenade deck and just stare and the views. 

After awhile I know I need some food so I head up to the Horizon Court and grab a small bite.  A bit of Musselix, half a bagel and fresh fruit. 

Around 6:30 I head down to deck five to the coffee bar and curly up in a chair near the window and read.  The coffee bar on this ship doesn’t open until 7 am and the staff here are just setting things up.  But around 6:45 the bartender says I can get you your beverage now if you wish.  I buy a new coffee card $29 plus 15% gratuity $4.35 total of $33.35 which gives you 15 espresso beverages.

Bernie comes and meets me and he gets his tea and then heads upstairs to get his breakfast.  On this ship the dining room serving lunch and breakfast is the International Dining room that is normally the Traditional Dining room at the aft of the ship.  Princess is smart they have set up a person on deck 5 and deck 6 near the dining rooms there to direct passengers to the dining room that is open for breakfast – smart thinking Princess.  And trust me there were a lot of people looking.

Seas are so calm, in fact I swear we are docked it is so calm.  Weather is lovely, sunny and clear, and cool but not cold, but if you head outside you do need a jacket as the sea breeze sends a shiver down your spine.  But really you couldn’t ask for better weather.

Lots of things going on around the ship this morning.  There is a Welcome to Princess gathering so people can learn about the loyalty program and that is followed by Future Cruise Presentation.  Goofy Golf Putting in the atrium where you had to put around the elevators, then past the future cruise desk, then into the library.  Looks like they had fun.

I attended Zumba led by Walter and boy was that fun and very crowded!  Worked up a good sweat.  Now it is time to shower then head to Mark’s first lecture on Glaciers All Around.

Mark Harris’ lecture on glaciers was very popular and I learned a lot. 

We are both hungry, it is 2 pm and we haven’t eaten for about 8 hours so we head up to the Horizon Court for bite.  And I wander around the ship afterwards, stopping to watch the last hour of the movie Big which is showing up on the pool deck.  The warm sun on my face is very calming and I am struggling to keep my eyes open.  The weather is perfect, the seas are so very calm that the sun is reflecting off it and blinds us. 

We see quite a bit of wildlife today, a huge school of dolphins played at the bow of the ship.  This morning there was a pod of whales, not sure which kind of whale because they were too far away.  Then this afternoon just looking from our cabin we see about four separate pods of whales in the distance.  We follow them with our eyes and just enjoy their majesty. 

With so many first time cruisers on board a lot of people are lost or trying to figure things out, but the staff are very helpful and many of the seasoned passengers are assisting too. 

We have a great cabin steward (Sherwin) who is very attentive.  A light was flickering in the bathroom and within an hour of telling him it was fixed.  

Today for activities they had the wooden horse racing, slot tournament, Gemstones Around the World lecture, Bingo, Cruise Long Scavenger Hunt, another Zumba class (I popped my head in and again it was packed), golf chipping, line dance class, the movie Argo, carpet bowling and a medical professional get together. 

Tonight is formal night (but we are not dressing up but will head to Horizon Court instead).  Events tonight are a LGBT gathering, Captains Welcome Aboard Party, Majority Rules Trivia, Princess Popstar, and the Production Show tonight is I Got the Music.  What is odd is there is nothing in Explorer’s Lounge except for U2 and then a James Brown Concert. 

I am back in the cabin and it is around 6:30 and I am relaxing while Bernie decided to head up to Skywalkers for a drink at the Platinum/Elite Lounge.  Tonight’s Drink is the Chairman of the Board served with Smoked Salmon with Toast Points.

Tonight we put our clocks back an hour and we dock in Ketchikan early but we leave at 2 pm.  We don’t have any set plans in any of the ports but because it is a short day tomorrow we are just going to walk around.