Vancouver, British Columbia

About the pictures above:  The first 2 are pictures of art work out of corks and wire off wine bottles and some origami by one of the bartenders.  He created some amazing things like a car, bear, flowers, large wine bottle, and a vase that he made paper flowers for.  There are a few of us getting ready for the mandatory fire and emergency drill.  We looks so cute in our orange vests.  In 2 you will see me trying to drive the ship... LOL  Actually it's a ship's wheel outside one of the lounges.  We all had fun taking pictures there.  The pretty scenery pictures will follow. 

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We arrived in Vancouver, British Columbia on Saturday, August 25 around noon.  After a wild taxi-van ride to our hotel, we were able to have our luggage stored while we walked about 4 blocks to a great little restaurant for lunch.  It was a relaxed meal with friendly service and it felt great to be out in the warm sunshine on the way back to the hotel to check in.

We had a very nice, very large room off a little courtyard but up 3 flights of narrow stairs.  No elevator!  Luckily, the bellman and Dennis were able to lug the heavy suitcases up while I managed the backpacks and my purse.  We settled in and even took an hour long nap before meeting Mick and Dianne for our next adventure.

The desk clerk called a taxi for us and we went to a section of Vancouver called Gastown.  It's so beautiful and a bit of a tourist hang out.  There are a lot of shops and little places to eat.  The light posts all have huge baskets of flowers hanging from them and the store fronts and buildings date back to the 1920's or earlier.  We found an art gallery that featured stone sculptures of wildlife such as walrus, whales, seals, otters, bears, moose, and deer.  There were others of native Indians in kayaks.  There were carvings and some paintings, too.  We were the only people in the gallery so the owner and his assistant took a lot of time showing us pieces and giving us the history about the artists and the background of the native Indians of Vancouver and Canada.  It was a very interesting hour or more.

From there, we walked to the main dock where Princess Cruise lines arrives and departs.  One of their largest ships was in port preparing for a 6 p.m. departure.  We were looking for a place to have dinner so I ducked into a little shop and asked a girl working there if she had a place to recommend.  She told us to go to a seafood restaurant around the corner.  She said she heard the food was very good.  We found it and went inside.  We were unsure about it but decided that by the time we found another place it would be getting dark.  After a 20 minute wait, we were seated right next to a window so we were able to watch the ship leave port and enjoy the sunset.  The food was fantastic and well worth the outrageous prices.  LOL  We were very glad we stayed to enjoy such delightful dishes.

A taxi stand was right outside when we were finished and we were driven - Oh, My God! Those drivers are NUTS! - back to the hotel where we all said good night and went to bed early.

Sunday morning, we were up and out for a walk around 9:00.  None of the restaurants we saw on Saturday were going to open until 10:00 so we just started exploring the boardwalk and looking into shop windows.  About 3 blocks from the hotel, we found a little sidewalk cafe open.  You order your breakfast at a counter, they give you a number and then you find a place to sit.  They do bring your food to you hot off the grill.  It was very good and very reasonable.

After that, we hoofed it back to the hotel, packed up and called a van to take us to the ship.  We checked in and boarded at 1:00 p.m. 

What a beautiful ship The Serenade of the Seas is.  So elegant!  We felt like little kids as we walked through doors and looked up at the glass elevators taking guests to the 13 different decks.  We went on a tour to check out the Solarium which is a covered pool and deckarea.  It's just beautiful.  So nice because it's warm in there and those who wanted to swim and enjoy the spa could do that even though the weather outside was to be pretty cold, windy and wet.  There are so many other beautiful places on that ship that I will talk about as I continue to journal.  The Solarium was the place that first impressed me the most.

We found our room, 9016 on the 9th deck, and met the steward who would be taking very good care of it and us.  From there, we went to the Windjammer Cafe - a buffet style place - for a light lunch.

When we got back, our luggage was sitting outside our doors.  I couldn't believe it got there so fast.  They handle over 5000 pieces of luggage!  They have a very well organized system for everything they do.  I was so impressed with how well things are run.

We unpacked a few things and then it was time for dinner.  We had first seating at 6 p.m.  We sat at table 414, a nice table for 4 one table away from a big window so we had a nice view.  Our waiter was Anthony from the Philippines and his assistant was Francisco from Mexico.  Both were just delightful, organized, professional and very helpful to me because of my dietary restrictions. 

We went to the Welcome Show which was a lot of fun and then to the Champagne Lounge for a drink and to listen to music for an hour or so before exhaustion made us go to bed.

The next two days, we were at sea cruising through the Inside Passage on our way to our first excursion - The Hubbard Glacier.  While at sea, we explored the ship, ate, saw shows, shopped in the gift shops, relaxed, met people from all over the world, and enjoyed our evenings after dinner listening to music in the lounge.  On the second day, Dennis entered a Slot Machine Tournament.  He placed 4th out of 88 people who played.  He didn't win any money but he sure had fun.

Next time I'll journal about our first stop - Hubbard Glacier

Until then......................   ô..ô