Before we are too far away from Alaska, we came across some interesting facts about that state. The size of Alaska is 586,412 square miles. It is as wide as the lower 48 states and larger than Texas, California, and Montana combined. The biggest mountain in the North American continent is Mt. McKinley at 20,320 feet. The Yukon River is almost 2000 miles long, the 3rd longest in the world. Alaska has more coastline than all other states combined. One of the strongest earthquakes happened in Alaska in 1964 – a 9.2 magnitude. Finally there are more active glaciers in Alaska than the rest of the inhabited world. One glacier, Malispina, is 850 square miles – bigger than the country of Sweden.
Today was "Brunch Day", so we did not expect to see many customers for breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill. We were wrong. Many of the Neptune crowd have enjoyed the special attention in this venue. We sure have. The tables filled within a half hour.
By the time we went back to our room, we found two more tiles and an invite to another international wine tasting this afternoon at 2pm. Nice to be invited, but we did not attend. The weather was mostly wet, foggy and dismal with a noticeable swell just enough to make re-packing not so much fun. We did not need to be really careful, because we will unpack when we move to deck six tomorrow. Everything on hangers will be moved for us on one or two carts. It still took the better part of the morning to finish the job…more or less. Just don't ask where anything is in the four suitcases.
This final sea day was full of fun activities and promotions in the shops and spa. Every venue on the ship was full of people all day long. We had another invitation for a Mariner Recognition Event in the Explorer's Lounge at 4:30pm. We will attend that one. In the meantime, we ventured into the Lido for a late lunch. Instead of salad, one of us finally tried the pasta bar. The spaghetti with Bolognaise sauce was hot and tasty topped with parmesan cheese. There were two cheesy rolls left, so we took both of them. Adding a couple of slices of pizza, and we were full once again.
Every single window seat was taken with folks watching the scenic cruising of the Inside Passage. Both the Lido and deck five were filled with onlookers. Last week we went outside around 4 or 5pm, but it was raining, so we did not see a lot. It appeared the sun was peeking through the clouds, so today's viewing may be better.
At 4:30pm, we headed to the Mariner Eventin the Explorer's Lounge. There was a total of seven people including us. Boy, have these events changed or what? The cruise and travel director, food and beverage manager, the hotel manager, two ladies from the front desk, Vini, the event planner, and Captain Willems were present. No one got a medallion. But we did get a group photo with the officers and Captain. We were served drinks, the same that we ordered last time, but no snacks….just peanuts. Captain Willems came over and chatted with us for a bit. He said he was heading home tomorrow and Captain Ane Jan Smit will be taking over. All of the captains work 3 months at a time, then are off for 3 months. By the way, we learned that the wine tasting was cancelled due to lack of customers.
By 5:30pm, we bundled up and went outside to look for wildlife. The bow was supposed to be opened at 4pm, but it never did. There were six other people with us since it was windy and cool. No rain. We witnessed some whales blowing and diving, then saw a few orcas in the distance. But the best sighting had to be Dall porpoises, the most we have ever seen in one place. It was well worth the wait, braving the elements. These porpoises are so fast, it takes a good camera to capture their movements. It took hundreds of shots to get some good ones.
Coming back to our room, we already had 2 copies of the group photo taken at the Mariner Event. Nice memory. Dinnertime arrived quickly as it always does. For some unknown reason, the menu for tonight was not on the TV. However there were some favorites that we ordered. Starters were spring rolls and hot tomato soup. Mains were sweet and sour shrimp and one beef brisket with creamy mashed potatoes. Both good. So much so, we skipped dessert. Right before our entrees were served, the farewell parade began with the kitchen staff, chefs, and waiters. With swinging napkins, everyone cheered them. Short and sweet, unlike the days of the Baked Alaska parade with sparklers on the top of the special dessert. That was fun back then, but we think there may have been a few hair-dos that caught fire along the way.
The comedy of Jim Short was the entertainer this evening with "Have Baggage Will Travel". Then there is always a movie in the Wajang, or continue packing for tomorrow's big exit.
Stay tuned…we will be back.
Bill & Mary Ann
