helipad

Guests aren’t allowed to see the crew areas, but since you aren’t guests I guess I can show you. Actually shooting the crew areas is all Steve’s doing. He was on his last cruise and was going picture taking crazy wanting to show his family everything. One of the other Orchestra guys took a picture of Steve playing with a towel on his head during rehearsal because the air conditioning was blowing right on him and he was cold. Then I got one last shot of Steve being a goofball on the helipad at the very front of the ship.

Katie

Tattoo in Victoria

Steve had wanted to get another tattoo for a while and when we were walking around Victoria B.C. we came across a cool tattoo parlor. So the next time we were at port there, Steve got his tattoo. He designed a bass clef on his computer and Dan the tattoo artist was able to match it exactly. I think it took about an hour and the whole time Steve was just sitting there calmly in his zone so I made him make a face like it was painful. It looked so cool, I decided to get a matching treble clef on my back...just kidding. Sorry, mom, you know how I like to tease.

Katie

Reid Falls

My second time in Skagway Steve and I went hiking to Reid Falls. I shouldn’t say hiking; it was more like walking. But anyway, you literally have to go to the end of town, take the unmarked dirt road to a trail, walk past the old cemetery, go a little ways through the woods and all of the sudden there’s this huge waterfall. The next time I was there, I hiked to the top of the waterfall, but that story is for another Chronicle.

Katie

Hubbard Glacier

Hubbard Glacier is so cool. It’s one of those places the ship goes to and cruises around and no one gets off…no one except me and the ship’s photographer. We were so lucky! We got to ride in one of the ship’s tender boats all around the glacier and icebergs to get some up close and personal video footage and pictures. I touched an iceberg! The guy that was driving the boat got us right along next to one so we could all touch it. That was so cool! And the weather our first time out there was incredible. All the seasoned crew were saying they had never seen the sky so clear at Hubbard Glacier. I am so spoiled! I love it!

Steve got some great shots of the boat and me on it. It’s hard to tell just how big the glacier is and how close we got until you look at the last picture in the bottom right corner, you will see the tiny orange tender boat with the glacier looming in the back. And keep in mind we were still a good distance away from the glacier itself. That has to be the pinnacle of my Alaska experiences so far. But just you wait. There are more adventures to come.

Katie

whale watching

So Dan and I were hiking in the woods and we came across these two grizzly bears! Well okay they were behind a fence, but we were hiking. We went to Grouse Mountain in Vancouver and did the Grind. There is a hiking trail on Grouse Mountain that goes practically straight up. It’s 1.8 miles long and has an elevation of 2,800 feet and they call it the Grouse Grind. Dan and I did it in just over an hour. I had to stop and take pictures a couple of times and it was a good excuse for a break because it was a hard hike. Everyone was steaming and you could see their breath as they huffed and puffed. At the top of Grouse Mountain there was an enclosure that had some bears and wolves and that’s how I got those great shots. I haven’t seen any bears on any of the hikes that I’ve done in the wilderness. I think my laugh is too loud and I scare them all away, plus Dan and I know better than to take food and if we do a really deep in the woods hike we don’t shower the night before. It’s kinda gross, but we haven’t had any bear encounters yet.

I’ve been whale watching a lot in Alaska. I can’t get enough of it. I’ve seen humpbacks on their own doing lunge feeding where they dive down and then spring out of the water with their mouths open catching fish. And I’ve seen groups of them doing bubble netting where they all go below and blow bubbles to catch fish and then they all swoop up together and eat them. One time a whale came up really close to our boat and took a breath and all the vapor wafted over to us. I’ve never been so excited to smell such stinky fish breath in my life.

Katie

Hoonah, Alaska

Icy Straight Point is really a cannery next to Hoonah, Alaska. But I guess if they put "Cannery" on the itinerary no one would get off the ship to go see it. Basically Royal Caribbean International bought this old cannery and fixed it up and put shops in, so that they could have their own private port and not have to pay docking fees. Most cruise lines own an island in the Caribbean that they can do the same at.

Hoonah is cool because it’s small and remote and there’s lots of wildlife. I saw so many bald eagles and humpback whales and dolphins and sea otters there. But as far as everything else about the place goes...eh. The people are nice. Most of the population are Tlinget Indians. The best thing is I can call home easily and talk for a long time.

Katie

Skagway, Alaska

Skagway, Alaska is a really cool town. I’ve been there twice and I will go again once more this cruise, and then that’s it. We will be starting seven-day cruises and they’ve cut Skagway out, which is a huge bummer because it’s not only a cool port town, but there’s lots of great hiking and the sail in and out is beautiful.

My first time in Skagway, I went to the Red Onion Saloon. It’s a neat little bar that used to be a brothel. They have a tour upstairs with one of the colorful servers that Steve, Alex, and I went on. And they invite musicians from the ships to play for beer. So Steve played with some of the other guys from our ship and one other that was docked. And yes, that’s Alex behind the drum set in one shot and no he’s not a drummer, but yes he was drunk. We all had a great time in the Red Onion Saloon.

Katie

Alaska

Alaska is marvelous. Everywhere we go the air is cool and clean and fresh. There are so many bald eagles up here; they’re like pigeons. And we have been so lucky to have had the most wonderful weather anyone could hope for. For my first great Alaskan adventure, I went hiking in Juneau on Mount Roberts with Steve. We had a great time. We made it all the way to the top, but I have to admit we cheated a little and took a tram up for the first half of the mountain. Then we slid on our butts on the snowy patches on the way down and man was is cold.

Now before you all start asking again, I just want to set you all straight. Steve and I are not a couple, neither are Alex and I for that matter. Both Steve and Alex already have girlfriends. And sadly, Steve is leaving tomorrow. He has been a wonderful friend and adventure buddy and I will miss him greatly. You will still see him in the Chronicles, though because I am always a little behind with them. I’ve actually been on two Alaska cruises already. I have just over a month to go up here. So enjoy, and don’t forget to send me email about what you are doing. Really, I like hearing from all of you, even if it’s just to say hi.

Katie

Ocho Rios, Jamaica

I’d been to Ocho Rios, Jamaica a number of times when I worked on the Century and my favorite excursion in the Caribbean was horseback riding in the ocean in Ocho Rios. The Infinity docked in Montego Bay, Jamaica and I raved about horseback riding on the beach to Alex who had always wanted to do that. So the San Francisco Gang was at it again. Alex, Steve and I went horseback riding in Jamaica.

I wanted to go with the same company that I did the last time I was there, but they would only deal through the ship, and our shore excursions person on the ship couldn’t arrange it for us. So we got off and asked a local if there were any other ranches around that would take us horseback riding in the ocean. He found a place that was close by that would do it.

We really lucked out on this one. The place we went to was very small and they didn’t have any big tours for the day. So it was just me, Alex, Steve, our guide and his young son. We got our own personalized tour of the countryside. We went through the mountains and down to a deserted beach. Then we rode bareback in the water. That was a really great day. If you're ever in Jamaica, go horseback riding in the ocean, there's nothing else like it.

Katie

Aruba

Here are some shots that I got from Alex. There’s one of me in Aruba in the water, there’s some from the hike down to the bottom of a waterfall that we did in Hawaii, whale watching in Hawaii, and finally taking pictures at the Wamea Canyon also in Hawaii.

Katie