To celebrate our 25th anniversary of having graduated from college, my former college roommates (David Meyerson and Bob Brodman) and i, together with our spouses (and Bob's daughter and her friend) went on a cruise to Alaska. The Oosterdam (Holland American Lines) started in Seattle, sailed up to Glacier Bay, then stopped at several ports before arriving back at Seattle. {There are no pictures from Ketchikan because our planned floatplane ride to the Misty Fjords was cancelled.}
Aboard the Oosterdam
We are grateful to Aunt Linda & Uncle Danny for recommending that we spring for the room with a verandah. We had fabulous meals, saw some great shows, and were greeted back at our room by a different towel animal each night.
Glacier Bay
In glacier bay we stopped to watch the Margerie Glacier calving. This process, whereby large pieces crack and fall into the water below, results in loud cracking and splashing sounds referred to as "white thunder".
Juneau
In Juneau we took a hike in a temperate rainforest, winding up with a (foggy) view of Mendenhall Glacier and the iceberg-filled pond at its base. We then boarded a boat for a whale-watching tour, where we observed numerous humback whales (and sea lions).
Victoria, B.C.
We arrived at Victoria in the evening, and spent our time at Butchart Gardens. In addition to amazing gardens, there was a wonderful band by the name of Folk Arts Quartet playing, and the evening was capped off by the best fireworks display we've ever witnessed.
Seattle
Even though we were exhausted from our cruise (and were kicked off the ship early in the morning), we managed to wander around Seattle all day before our flight back. We spent a lot of time at the Science Fiction museum (where we saw genuine artifacts from the original Star Trek and Lost in Space television series, plus Planet of the Apes, Terminator, Blade Runner and many other movies. We also visited the adjacent Experience Music Project (a rock-and-roll museum, which was featuring a huge collection of outfits worn by The Supremes) and, of course, went to the top of the Space Needle...but the highlight of the day for me was seeing Captain Kirk's original chair from the bridge of the Enterprise! (Okay, that 1834 Martin guitar was pretty amazing, too...)
Seattle skyline from our ship
View from the Space Needle (Mt. Ranier in background)
Captain Kirk's command console, two uniforms, and a panel from the bridge of the Enterprise
Props from Star Trek (original series)
Props from Terminator II
Original uniforms from the original Planet of the Apes movie
Original robot from Lost in Space (original television series)
home page
