August 2017 - My wife, Suzann, and I flew to Seattle, Washington to meet our son, Gabriel, who was driving up from Portland, Oregon. We were all scheduled to meet our daughter, Savannah, in Seattle to board the Celebrity cruise ship "Solstice" for a family vacation we'd been planning for several months. Our sail date was August 18th. We arrived a day early just to make certain there wouldn't be any hitches as boarding for a cruise can be somewhat of a logistical issue. Gabriel came up too and stayed the night with us in the hotel.
The following day we spent a little time in downtown Seattle, taking in some of the sights before boarding the ship. We met Savannah and worked our way through the boarding process and settled into our room. By around 4:00 pm we left port headed for Alaska. All night and the following day would be "sea day" with no ports. On early Sunday morning we put into Katchican, Alaska. Suzann and I went shopping in town, while Savannah and Gabriel went hiking for a few hours. We had pretty-much the entire day to explore. We had to be back on board by no later than 5:00 pm. That evening Savannah would be performing her regular show and she'd asked us, as a family, to join her on stage for a couple of family numbers. It was quite the memorable evening.
The following day we made our way up Tracey Fjord to view the spectacular Sawyer Glacier. It was very cold there. We also saw a few harbor seals lying on pieces of ice in the fjord. The view up the fjord was amazing!
Next, was Juneau, the Capitol of Alaska. The kids went hiking (again) while Suzann and I rode the tram up to the top of Mt. Roberts for an amazing view of the port below. I took a very short hike to snap a few pictures while Suzann waited in the gift shop area. We went back down and into town where we stopped for a cup of coffee and a little snack before heading back to the ship.
We traversed the inside passage on the way to our next port, Skagway. An old gold mining town from the gold-rush era. There still exists a narrow gauge railway first used in 1899, The "White pass and Yukon Route." This is operated today as a tourist excursion with many great views. Suzann and I took this up to the summit. It's about a three and a half hour round trip (see photos that follow.)
The following day would be another "sea day" and we again as a family got to entertain for about an hour in the atrium of the ship.
The rest of the time we relaxed and enjoyed each other's company.
Our next port of call would be Victoria, British Columbia. Probably one of the most pristine cities that I've ever seen. I went by myself walking around town, visiting Chinatown, the inner harbor area to watch some street buskers, and visited the grounds of the nearby Parliament building. Suzann and the kids went to "Butchart Gardens." A beautiful flower garden and a National Historic Site of Canada.
It was a great way to end our cruise. We boarded the ship and spent the night cruising our way back to Seattle. We ported at around 6:00 am and by 8:30 we were off and giving goodby hugs to the kids.
Since returning from our trip, I've had time to reflect on the wonderful time we had. The things seen and experienced. I remembered, in particular, a moment when we were sailing back down the fjord after seeing the Sawyer glacier. We glided back down through the water, passing mountains, waterfalls, turquoise pieces of ice floating in the water listening to the hiss as the bow of the ship sliced through that frigid water. I thought of and sang to myself the words of one of my favorite hymns from childhood. "This is My Father's World."
This is my Father’s world, And to my list’ning ears
All nature sings, and round me rings
The music of the spheres.
This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas--
His hand the wonders wrought.
This is my Father’s world: The birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white,
Declare their Maker’s praise.
This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,
He speaks to me everywhere.
This is my Father’s world: Oh, let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world, The battle is not done:
Jesus who died shall be satisfied,
And earth and Heav’n be one.
Our sincere thanks to our daughter, Savannah, for working so hard putting all of this together so we could have a long overdue family vacation. Until next time . . .
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The following day we spent a little time in downtown Seattle, taking in some of the sights before boarding the ship. We met Savannah and worked our way through the boarding process and settled into our room. By around 4:00 pm we left port headed for Alaska. All night and the following day would be "sea day" with no ports. On early Sunday morning we put into Katchican, Alaska. Suzann and I went shopping in town, while Savannah and Gabriel went hiking for a few hours. We had pretty-much the entire day to explore. We had to be back on board by no later than 5:00 pm. That evening Savannah would be performing her regular show and she'd asked us, as a family, to join her on stage for a couple of family numbers. It was quite the memorable evening.
The following day we made our way up Tracey Fjord to view the spectacular Sawyer Glacier. It was very cold there. We also saw a few harbor seals lying on pieces of ice in the fjord. The view up the fjord was amazing!
Next, was Juneau, the Capitol of Alaska. The kids went hiking (again) while Suzann and I rode the tram up to the top of Mt. Roberts for an amazing view of the port below. I took a very short hike to snap a few pictures while Suzann waited in the gift shop area. We went back down and into town where we stopped for a cup of coffee and a little snack before heading back to the ship.
We traversed the inside passage on the way to our next port, Skagway. An old gold mining town from the gold-rush era. There still exists a narrow gauge railway first used in 1899, The "White pass and Yukon Route." This is operated today as a tourist excursion with many great views. Suzann and I took this up to the summit. It's about a three and a half hour round trip (see photos that follow.)
The following day would be another "sea day" and we again as a family got to entertain for about an hour in the atrium of the ship.
The rest of the time we relaxed and enjoyed each other's company.
Our next port of call would be Victoria, British Columbia. Probably one of the most pristine cities that I've ever seen. I went by myself walking around town, visiting Chinatown, the inner harbor area to watch some street buskers, and visited the grounds of the nearby Parliament building. Suzann and the kids went to "Butchart Gardens." A beautiful flower garden and a National Historic Site of Canada.
It was a great way to end our cruise. We boarded the ship and spent the night cruising our way back to Seattle. We ported at around 6:00 am and by 8:30 we were off and giving goodby hugs to the kids.
Since returning from our trip, I've had time to reflect on the wonderful time we had. The things seen and experienced. I remembered, in particular, a moment when we were sailing back down the fjord after seeing the Sawyer glacier. We glided back down through the water, passing mountains, waterfalls, turquoise pieces of ice floating in the water listening to the hiss as the bow of the ship sliced through that frigid water. I thought of and sang to myself the words of one of my favorite hymns from childhood. "This is My Father's World."
This is my Father’s world, And to my list’ning ears
All nature sings, and round me rings
The music of the spheres.
This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas--
His hand the wonders wrought.
This is my Father’s world: The birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white,
Declare their Maker’s praise.
This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass,
He speaks to me everywhere.
This is my Father’s world: Oh, let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world, The battle is not done:
Jesus who died shall be satisfied,
And earth and Heav’n be one.
Our sincere thanks to our daughter, Savannah, for working so hard putting all of this together so we could have a long overdue family vacation. Until next time . . .
Next page