Alaska

8.10.08 - Sunday - On board the Norwegian Pearl! Of course we went straight to the buffet and had some lunch as the ship departed. Not intimidated by the rainy and slightly chilly Seattle weather, the Horne side of the family ate by the pool. Sarah was surprised by some streamers and balloons and a big Happy Birthday cake when we opened the door to our cabin. Once our bags arrived at our cabin, we unpacked and hung out until an early dinner at the buffet. We went to the opening show and Sarah thought it was so entertaining that she promptly fell asleep! So back to the room with a sleeping Sarah (who slept all night in her bunk bed right above Mommy and Daddy's bed). Kenneth, Bob, Jan, and Pam met in the casino for some gambling.
8.11.08 - Monday - Sarah's big #3! She opened some small presents from Mommy and Daddy as soon as she woke up. Then after quick breakfast at the buffet, Sarah was off to the Aqua Kid's Club to watch some Dora and play with Legos. She even got her face painted! Some excitement on the ship as a Coast Guard helicopter had to pickup two passengers for medical evacuation (one lady broke her hip and a gentleman had a heart attack). Big formal dinner tonight - everyone got all dressed up. We did a big family picture on the stairs. Sarah yelled "banana bread" (instead of "cheese") every time the photographer took a picture so there were some big smiles in the photo! At dinner, Kenneth got Anthony to try the duck and it was a big hit with both of them. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to Sarah and shared some more cake.
8.12.08 - Tuesday - Had breakfast outside on the back of the ship even though it was cold and misty. We saw some icebergs too! Sarah went to Kid's Club again - she sang songs, went to the jungle gym, and watched a movie. Meanwhile Bob, Jan, Anthony, Ashley, Kenneth, Bevin, Misha, Mica, Moshe, and Machi went bowling! We had a blast even though the ship rocked every once in a while. Ship arrived in Juneau. Doug, Treanne, Misha, Mica, Jan, Ashley, Bevin and Sarah went window shopping downtown and then rode a tram up Mt. Roberts. We saw a bald eagle that had been injured in the beak and left eye. It had an amazing wing span of 6.5 feet! We climbed through muddy terrain and saw some beautiful scenery. Misha, Mica, Ashley and Doug went all the way up and saw some snow! We watched a little movie about the Tlinglit Native Americans and after yawning (loudly) twice Sarah fell asleep. Meanwhile, Bob, Anthony, and Kenneth toured the local watering holes. It was pouring down rain as we waited to get on the ship and of course Sarah had to go potty. Poor thing had a complete meltdown - thankfully we had lots of family to help us (thanks Misha and Treanne!) Sarah and Mommy ordered room service and relaxed and then Sarah chatted a little with Grammy via cell phone.
8.13.08 - Wednesday - Arrived in Skagway. Cold and rainy. We walked down Broadway (the main street) and went into some shops. Sarah got a stuffed igloo with some animals and Bevin picked up some scrapbooking necessities. Then Bevin and Sarah went back to the boat for a much needed nap. Woke up at 5:30 and got dressed for dinner. Met up with Ashley, Anthony Misha, Mica, Moshe, Machi, Doug and Treanne and ate at Summer Palace. Sarah spent the night with Misha and Mica in their cabin. Mommy and Daddy went to the casino and met up with Bob, Jan, and Anthony (who had been making friends in the hot tub!). Kenneth and I played craps and had lots of fun. We all had midnight snacks at the Blue Lagoon. The waiter told Kenneth he'd "scumbag" (come back but with an accent) so we had a little fun with that.
8.14.08 - Thursday - Cruised through Glacier Bay and saw some really big glaciers. We even saw a waterfall pouring through a hole in one of the icebergs. We sat on the back deck (Great Outdoors) to watch the glaciers. In the afternoon we saw some whales splashing too! Sarah played in the Kids Club all morning while Kenneth, Bob, and Bevin enjoyed a couple of cool drinks in the Bliss Ultra Lounge. Cool thing about Kids Club is the phone/pager they give the parents. It can call anywhere on the ship - for free!! Then Kenneth, Bevin, Bob, and Sarah had a late lunch (at the buffet!). Then it was nap time until it was time to eat AGAIN! We had dinner at La Cucina Italian restaurant with Jan, Bob, and Anthony and enjoyed a bottle of wine. Towards the end of dinner the ship was rocking quite a bit
8.15.08 - Friday - Arrived in Ketchikan - Salmon Capitol of the World! We walked around all the shops and watched some salmon swimming upstream. We saw a sea lion in the middle of all the salmon too! I was able to find a beautiful Christmas ornament for our collection at one of the artisan's shops. When we got back on the ship we went swimming with Bob, Anthony, and Ashley. There was a huge water slide but Mommy's bottom kept getting stuck so we didn't go down very many times! Then Sarah and Mommy had lunch and a little nap. Sarah went to Kid's Club while the rest of the family met for dinner - I had some delicious mushroom risotto. Mommy picked Sarah up from Kid's Club and we went to the Chocoholic Buffet. Then we went back to the room and ordered the Horne family favorite - mac and cheese!
8.16.08 - Saturday - Last day at sea! Sarah went to Kid's Club in the morning and Mommy and Daddy took a long nap! We arrived in Victoria and took a short (ha ha!) walk to the Inner Harbor in Downtown Victoria. The short walk took forever and we opted for a cab on the way back to the ship! Jan, Bob, Anthony, Ashley, Kenneth, Bevin, and Sarah had sodas and some awesome fries at a little restaurant overlooking the harbor. Once back on the ship we finished packing - we were ready to go ashore in Seattle!